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on 



THE BOOK OF BDRKSHIKE. 



TUE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 




THE 



BOOK OF BERKSHIRE 



DESCRIBING AND ILLUSTRATING ITS 



HILLS AND HOMES 



AND TELLING WHERE THEY ARE, WHAT THEY ARE 

AND W^HY THEY ARE DESTINED TO BECOME 

THE MOST CHARMING AND DESIRABLE 

SUMMER HOMES IN AMERICA. 



By CLARK W. BRYAN. /y*-^I 




CLARK W. BRYAN & CO., Publishers, 

Great Barrington, Mass., and Holyoke, Mass. 

New York Office, 239 Broadway. 



\ 



Copyright, i8S6. 
All Rights Reserved. 



AN INTRODUCTION. 



The Reading Public : 



ALLOW US TO INTRODUCE YOU TO 

The Book of Berkshire. 



BERKSHIRE, by common consent, is not only a good place 
to be born in, but a good place to live in, and a good place 
to die in, as well. It is also prominently recognized as a 
good place to go out from, and equally a good place to come back 
to. Its traditions are marvelously full, rich and interesting. Its his- 
tory is replete with story, song and incident — with mention of good 
deeds, of patriotism, valor, chivalry and refinement ; of enviable 
record and renown, and "last, but not least," — so to speak, — it is big 
with promise for the future ; that is to s«y, To- Day sees rising from 
the embers of its altars and its fires of Yesterday, a wealth of 
golden wreaths around the brows of fame and fortune, with which 
to gloriously perpetuate its To-Morrow. 

The record which Berkshire has made, both at home and abroad, 
is one to be proudly recited and to be read of admiringly and profit- 
ably. Its beauties of form, its favorable features of landscape, and 
its pictures of loveliness, in combination, are unsurpassed, however 
broad the comparison may be made. 

A Berkshire birth is something to be proud of, a Berkshire sojourn 
a delight, a rest, a recreation, a circumstance of pleasant memory, 
ever after, and a Berkshire residence a rich and enjoyable life ex- 



6 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 



perience, far beyond that of "the common lot of humanity," as scat- 
tered broadcast over the earth. 

To illustrate and describe — all too briefly, however — what God 
and man have done for this region among the hills; to picture its 
beauties and glories, and to forecast the possibilities and the proba- 
bilities of Berkshire as it may be, is the object of the issue of this 
little book. The work of its preparation has been a labor of love, 
albeit that labor has been exacting, perplexing and sometimes dis- 
couraging. But it has had the pleasant thought and careful con- 
sideration of several years, the best efforts of our head, heart, 
hands and feet for many months, and these would have fallen far 
short of what has been accomplished, but for the valuable assistance 
and aid which have been so freely accorded to the enterprise. 

The laboring oar in the preparation of the text has been taken by 
George K. Holmes, who is second to none in his admiration, fond- 
ness and appreciation for and of Berkshire. He was born in Berk- 
shire, and is proud of his birth place ; his home is in Berkshire, and 
he appreciates and enjoys it, and he, — like the writer of these lines, 
whose adopted home here is one of the most fascinating features 
of a lengthened life, — should the end of life's journey find him in 
Berkshire, will welcome the circumstance. Extensive and valuable 
assistance has been had from H. T. Oatman, who has given us of 
his wonderful stock of genius and knowledge abundantly. These 
two gentlemen know well the field of operation necessary to culti- 
vate in preparing the book, from Greylock to the Dome of the 
Taconics, and have no equals for the work of careful research and 
good writing of Berkshire, in order that the reader may know it, as 
it was, as it is and as it may be. 

We are also under obligations, which we gratefully acknowl- 
edge, for valuable favors from the Berkshire Life Insurance Com- 
pany, through William R. Plunkett and James W. Hull, respectively 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 



its president and treasurer, to J. B. Harrison, Charles Clifford, and 
to Librarian E. G. Hubbell of the Berkshire Athen^um, all of Pitts- 
field ; to W. O. Curtis, W. D. Curtis, and Prof. Harlan H. Ballard, 
of Lenox; to C. H. Plumb, Arthur W. Plumb, E. W. B. Canning, the 
Rev. Dr. Henry M. Field, and Daniel B. Fenn, of Stockbridge; 
to Charles J. Taylor, Principal Frank A. Hosmer, H. F. Keith, 
and H. C. Warner, of Great Barrington ; to William J. Bartlett 
of Lee ; to Frank S. Weaver of Mount Washington ; to- Robert L. 
Taft of Clayton ; to S. C. Beckley of Canaan, Ct. ; to Judge D. J. 
Warner and Judge D. T. Warner of Salisbury, Ct. ; to William E. 
Pettee of Lakeville, Ct. ; to Judge Robbins Battell and the Rev. J. 
W. Beach, of Norfolk, Ct. ; to Frank L. Pope of Elizabeth, N. J. ; 
to Milo Stowell of Hinsdale; to F. C. Brown of Cheshire; to 
E. G. Locke, C. Q. Richmond, James H. Flagg, George B. Tor- 
rey, of North Adams ; to Daniel Upton of Adams ; to George H. 
Phelps of Blackinton; to J. M. Waterman and Prof. A. L. Perry of 
Williamstown. 

In the work of gathering such a mass of material, and the per- 
plexing details of bringing them harmoniously together — the larger 
part of which has never before been in print — there must of neces- 
sity be errors both great and small, we hope, however, of the latter 
only. When such are discovered, it wdll be a favor both to the 
public and the publishers, if we may be informed of the fact and 
have accurate information, from which errors may be corrected, in 
future revised editions. 

Our Book, as the public will readily discover, is prepared in a 
spirit of much enthusiasm regarding the subject matter in hand. 
Should the reader feel that there is, as Artemas Ward said, "Too 
Mutch " in this vein, and incline to the opinion that it savors some- 
what of "gush," by comparing our own writing with those from the 
"outside world," from whose eminent and conservative pens we 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 



have made quotations, it will be seen that we are in good company 
in making up our estimate of the Berkshire Hills and Homes 

With this much of remark we close this ceremony of Introduction 
with the simple announcement that whether The Book of Berk- 
shire is good or bad, perfect or imperfect, valuable or valueless, 
worthy or unworthy of regard and patronage, it is peculiarly its own, 
and strong in individuality, if in nothing else. It is not a History, 
. nor is it a hastily prepared Guide Book, alone, but it is The Book 
OF Berkshire. 



CLARK W. BRYAN. 



Great Barrington, 

Berkshire County, Mass., 

May, 1886. 




Dome of the Taconics. 



BBRKSHIRE'S HII.I.S AND HOMES. 



Between where Hudson's waters flow 

Adown from gathering streams. 
And where the clear Connecticut, 

In lengthened beauty gleams— 
Where run bright rills, and stand high rocks,- 

Where health and beauty comes, 
And peace and happiness abides, 

Rest Berkshire's Hills and Homes. 

The Hoosac winds its tortuous course, 

The Housatonic sweeps 
Through fields of living loveliness, 

As on its course it keeps. 
Old Saddleback stands proudly by. 

Among Taconic's peaks, 
And rugged mountain Monument 

Of Indian Legend speaks. 

Mount Washington, with polished brow. 

Green in the Summer days. 
Or white with winter's driving storms. 

Or with Autumn's flame ablaze. 
Looms up across the southern sky. 

In native beauty dressed— 
The home of Bash-Bish, weird and old, 

A near the mountain's crest. 



10 



TUE BOOK OF BERKSHIKE. 



The winds come fresh from heaven's dome, 

Blue skies trend clear and bright, 
Great clouds in turn swing gracefully. 

In majesty and might. 
The hum of industry goes out, 

Upon the passing breeze. 
And wealth and worth and weariness 

Bring competence and ease. 

And still each streamlet runs its course. 

And still each mountain stands, 
While Berkshire's sons and daughters roam 

Through home and foreign lands ; 
But though they roam, or though they rest, 

A thought spontaneous comes, 

Of love and veneration for 

Our Berkshire Hills and Homes. 

c. w. p.. 




Greylock. 





IIVOEX. 




PAGE. 




Adams, 


168 


Hasty Tour, 


Alford, .... 


196 


Hillsdale, N. Y., 


Becket, 


198 


Hinsdale, . . . . 


Bekkshire Pbose and Poetry, 241 


Introduction, 


Canaan, Ct., 


262 


Lakeville, . . . . 


Cheshire, .... 


212 


Lanesboro, . . . . 


Clarksburg, 


218 


Lee, 


Climate, .... 


221 


Lenox, 


CUMMINGTON, HAMPSHIRE Co., 266 


Monterey, . . . . 


Dalton, .... 


206 


Mount Washington, . 


Drives — .... 


228 


New Ashford, 


Adams, 




New Lebanon, N. Y., . 


Canaan, Ct., 




New Marlboro, . 






Norfolk, Ct., 


Lenox, 




North Adams, 


Norfolk, Ct., 




Otis, 


North Adams, 




Peru, 


Pittsfield, 




Pittsfield, . . . . 


Salisbury, Ct., 




Population, . . . . 


Sheffield, 




Richmond, . . . . 


South Egremont, 




Salisbury, Ct., . 


Stockbridge, 




Sandisfield, 


Williamstown, 




Savoy, 


Egremont — . 


141 


Sheffield, . . . . 


South, 




Stamford, Vt., . 


North, 




Stockbridge, 


Elevations, . 


22.5 


Topography, 


Florida, 


216 


Tyringham, . . . . 


Future of Berkshire, 


25 


Washington, 


General Survey, 


13 


West Stockbridge, 


Great Barrington, . 


81 


Wild Flowers and Plants 


Greylock Park, . 


173 


Williamstown, . 


Hancock, 


200 


Windsor, . . . . 



II«»EX XO II.I.USXRAXIONS. 



Alandar House, Mount Washing- 
ton, 157 

Bashbish Lower Falls, Mount 

Washington, .... 151 
Book of Berkshire Publication 

Office, Great Barrington, . . 2 
Canaan Falls, .... 252 
Chime of Bells Tower, Stock- 
bridge, 72 

Dome of the Taconics, . . 8 
" Fernside," Tyringham, . . 182 
"Gibson's Landing," Lake Buel, 187 
Great Barrington from the North- 
east, 80 

Great Barrington, Main Street, . 99 

Greylock, 10 

Initial "A," Lanesboro, . . 202 
Initial "A," Pittsfield, . . . loi 
Initial " B," Landscape, . . 13 
Initial " I," Lenox, ... 27 
Initial " N," Stockbridge, . . 55 
Initial " O," Great Barrington, . 81 
Initial "T," A Hasty Tour, . 237 
Initial "T," Mount Washington, 145 
Initial "W," Williamstown, . 124 
Monument Mountain, Great Bar- 
rington, 88 

Old Court House, Lenox, now 

Sedgwick Hall, .... 50 
Old Indian Burial Ground, Stock- 
bridge, 66 

Park Square, Pittsfield, . . 123 



Sheffield Elm, . . . . 
Sky Farm Cottage, Mount Wash- 
ington, 

Stockbridge Bowl, 
Williamstown, Main Street, 
Group of Pictures — 

1. Lake Garfield. 

2. Congregational Church, Lenox. 

3. Ancient House, South Egre- 

mont. 

4. Sage's Ravine, Mount Wash- 

ington. 

5. Plantain Pond, Mount Wash- 

ington. 
Group of Pictures — 

1. Wonderful Birch Tree, Lanes- 

boro. 

2. Wahconah Falls, Windsor. 

3. Pontoosuc Lake, Pittsfield. 

4. Onota Lake, Pittsfield. 
Group of Pictures — 

I. Berkshire County Court House, 

Pittsfield. 
2 and 4. Flowing Artesian Wells, 

Dalton. 
3. Lenox Club House. 

5. Crane Library, Dalton. 
Group of Pictures — 

1. Campbell's Falls, New Marl- 

boro. 

2. Hotel, Bashbish Falls. 

3. Eastern Portal, Hoosac Tunnel. 

4. Natural Bridge, North Adams. 

5. Upper Bashbish Falls. 



PAGE. 

134 

148 

76 

127 



108 



158 



BERKSH IRK. 




EEKSHIRE, among all the summer resorts of 
the United States, is the solitary representa- 
tive of its kind. There is no other such 
combination of the wild and the beautiful in 
nature — of perfect harmony in variety. An- 
other region may be found conspicuous for 
imposing- wildness, another that is pretty, 
possibly beautiful ; others may be healthful 
and invigorating, pleasant places for summer 
sojoiirn and interesting in their surroundings, 
where guests may find agreeable provision for 
their comfoit and enjoyment ; but there is not 
another region with which Berkshire must divide 
the honor of having all these at once— certainly, none possessing them 
all in the same high degree. Though the sublime work of nature may 
be found here, it is subservient to extraordinary beauty in the general 
effect upon the visitor. In the quality of this beauty Berkshire admits 
no rival ; if duplicates of its other claims may be found scattered else- 
where, the beauty of its scenery is unique and unrivaled. It seems as if, 
walled in from outside contamination and set apart from the spoiling 
hand of manufacture and traffic, here had been assembled the choicest 
touches of the Creator's handiwork. 

In most mountainous regions there is a tiresome similarity among the 
mountains, the hills, the forests, the valleys, the streams and the land- 
scape, but this is not so in Berkshire. Here, not only has no other region 
been patterned from, but the mountains and hills, on every hand, are 
fashioned in the most varied styles, the valleys are no two alike, and the 
scenery everywhere passes before the eye of the traveler in the richest 
and most lavish profusion of dissimilar characteristics. 

Amid all this, not an inharmonious effect is perceptible ; but, more 
than this, there is a marvelous blending of masterpieces of natural beauty, 
of the wild and the picturesque. Though there is civilization, somehow 



14 THE BOOK OF BEEKSHIKE. 

a Avilderness is not out of place, and though the surface of the earth be 
ruffled and rugged, often forest- covered and untillable, yet it impresses 
one as the fittest dwelling-place of the highest civilization, above and 
removed from the toil and trouble, the money getting struggle of busi- 
ness and professional life. 

The effect of the environment upon the visitor from cities, ujion the 
hard worker who would seek refuge from the cares of life and a tiresome 
noise and bvistle, is of a most soothing character. Not only are the 
nerves rested from an irritating tension, but there is something about 
the scenery that imparts a quietude, a repose, a freedom from distrac- 
tion, a healing with the balm of Dame Nature. The uneiiualed harmony 
of the suiTOundings exhales an infiucnce that enraptures the beholder, 
and creates within him an inward form of the external. 

The hills and mountains of Berkshire are now gentle and sloping in 
their lines, now wild and broken, sheltering well watered, thoroughly 
cultivated valleys, where towns and villages, famous for their beauty, 
hide among the trees ; a region of lakes, mountain torrents, glens, lovers' 
lanes, rocks, and echoes ; a region, too, where one may spend the summer 
and not die of ennui from lack of good and congenial society. 

People who go to mountain resorts expect to suffer more or less dis- 
comfort, to step out of civilization and enter primitive communities, to 
whom the world is strange, if not unknown. Berkshire, of all of them, 
is alone the jjlace where this expectation is disappointed. One may leave 
a civilization to come here, but he enters another ; he may abandon a 
pleasant home, but he finds a new one of unalloyed charms. He escapes 
from a world that is in many respects uncongenial, and discovers in its 
neighborhood, yet separated from it, a region of the best civilized insti- 
tutions, thriving in their own soil, and at the same time deriving nour- 
ishment from foreign soils. 

Here his ideas and feelings will be as cosmopolitan as in New York or 
Boston, and the comforts of living, all things considered, many fold en- 
hanced, unless during the winter, and even then there are pleasures 
unknown to city life. The daily morning newspapers of Springfield and 
Albany are received by nine o'clock or earlier ; New York and Boston 
morning papers arrive about noon ; evening papers are received on the 
same date ; numerous mails are in daily receipt, including Sunday. The 
facilities for telegraphing and telephoning are ample in every part of the 
county, and a dozen excellent local newspapers collect and spread the 
news. Local tradesmen are provided with an abundance and a large 
vai iety of the goods, the wares and the merchandise of the world. The 



THE BOOK OF BKKKSHIBE. 15 

central part of the county being but 110 miles from salt water, the food 
that is brought therefrom is always fresh and abundant. There is nothing 
in the way of nutriment, either for body or mind, that is not common in 
Berkshire and may not be had easily and cheaply. 

A journey from Xew York city to the southern half of the county, 
which is the portion of this famous region most soueht, requires but 
four hours and a half in drawing-room cars or in first class passenger 
cars that are the tidiest and best furnished and finished ones iu the 
United States. The distance is about 150 miles. From Boston the time 
is less than five hours, the distance being a little over 150 miles. Three 
lines of railway cross the region, and a line of railways extends up and 
down. The east and west line at the north is the Hoosac Tunnel road ; 
the middle line is the Boston & Albany, and the south line is the Hart- 
ford & Connecticut Western, which connects the Hudson and Connecticut 
rivers. From the center of the county, at Pittsfield, to the north end 
runs the Pittsfield & North Adams railroad, and towards the south runs 
the Housatonic road to Bridgeport, where connection is had with the 
New York, New Haven & Hartford road. These railway lines ntt'ord 
accommodations for travel to and from the region that make it easily 
accessible, and that make the return to the city an easy and short matter. 
No railroad in the country has taken greater pains to accommodate 
people who go to summer resorts than have been taken by the Housatonic 
road. Through cars on express trains are run to and from New York in 
about four hours and a half, and, if the traveler does not care to take the 
drawing-room car, he can ride in a car that almost seems like one, with 
' its brussels carpet, toilet-room, fine upholstery and cabinet finish. He 
can leave New York in the morning and eat a noon dimier in Berkshire, 
or leave near the close of business hours and eat a late dinner or supper 
here. The facilities for return are equally good, for he can leave Berk- 
shire at several convenient times, the last one being about 5 p. m., 
when an express train leaves, to arrive in New York about nine. Several 
express trains run both ways, and for Monday morning return a special 
one arrives in New Yoik about 11.45 n. m. Within five hours of this 
region, over these railroads and connecting lines, there are about ten 
millions of people, the most intellectual, the most cultivated, the most 
wealthy on the continent, and possessing the highest social development, 
and from these people are contributed those who resort to Berkshire and 
can appreciate its ofl:erings. 

The Berkshii-e region has been referred to as a summer resort, but it 
is more than this. It is the only autumn resort in the United States, 



1(3 THE BOOK OF BEKKSIIIEE. 

taking iio account of mere sportsmen's resorts. The seaside resorts are* 
not frequented in autumn, because of the raw winds and the dreary out- 
look ; inland resorts, away from mountains, lose their attractiveness 
with the loss of hot weather, and the visitor is no longer able to keep up 
his indulgences with comfort ; and in the mountainous regions, gener- 
ally there is no autumn, except in name, and the passage from summer 
to wintry weather is rapid. But in Berkshire there is an autumn of sur- 
passing loveliness. The air may get a frosty keenness and there may be 
some cold waves, but these are only the cheap price of ruddy cheeks 
and elastic muscles, a clear brain and bountiful flow of spirits. 

In place of the dreary time that comes upon most resorts by the middle 
of September, Berkshire often gets a climate that is quite mild up to the 
middle of November, and now and then a month later. As September 
passes, the foliage begins to turn from green to brilliant and varied hues. 
It is said by travelers to be true that nowhere else in the world are such 
wonderful effects in autumn foliage coloring seen as here. As the leaves 
lose their green, the reds, scarlets, cardinals, yellows, purples, in a dozen 
shades, interspersed with evergreens, all in infinite arrangements, con- 
front the beholder on every hand with their amazing spectacles. Every 
mountain is a huge bouquet, chameleon like under the changing sunlight. 
In October the leaves fall, coloring the very breezes into brilliance as 
they float along in irregular buoyancy, and making vast carpets, woven 
with a gigantic hand, from the richest colors. Toward the close of this, 
an eastern wind and rain will obliterate the last vestiges of the delaying 
leaves on the trees, and in a night the genii of the storm will transform 
the illuminated forest into bare limbs and twigs. 

But the scenery is by no means spoiled. The hazy-bluish browns and 
gretns alternate with darker shades, and the winter snow and sleet at 
last whiten the limbs or clothe them with diamonds. A driving wind 
will so place the snow upon the limbs that it seems at a distance as if 
Some great spirit had blown his breath upon the forest and it had frozen 
there. The most striking effect of all is caused by a rain, that freezes as 
it falls ; then an icy coat is put about everything, nnd among the curious 
and strange results, the louir, slim, white birches are bowed to earth, and 
every part of every tree is bent into graceful curves, making pictures 
that few city people ever saw, except in engravings, which, however, 
could never express the wonderful beauty of the rainbow colors made 
from the sunbeams by the refracting ice. 

Until such a time of the year Berkshire entertains guests, not only 
those who come to enjoy the country in good health, but those who come 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 17 

to find a sanitarium. Among the latter is a gentleman who has lived in 
the far South many years, where he had a home that he has abandoned 
for a home in Berkshire, declaring that his best health is realized here. 
An extract from a New York Herald editorial article expresses the dictum 
of hygienic science : " People in search of health are very eager to get to 
the mountains in summer, but ignore the hygienic properties of high level 
air in winter. Many invalids who cannot go to seaside winter resorts, and 
conclude that they must languish throughout the cold weather in their 
city homes, might do surprisingly well to try the beneficial effects of a 
winter sojourn on some of the moderate elevations of our Atlantic 
highlands." 

There is another point applicable alone to this region. One goes to^ 
other resorts to find liimself a foreigner, as it were, and after the "sea- 
son" is over, an intruder ; but he comes to Berkshire to a home. If he 
does not own a place here, still he can obtain the best of keeping at any 
time at highly attractive hotels. The making of an autumn season in 
Berkshire is due to the people who come to Lenox. In the waning of 
the summer they leave Newport and other places and take possession of 
their Berkshire homes or find entertainment at hotels. Until this was 
done it was not known by any but the permanent residents that the 
autumn season here was enjoyable ; and now the discovery of winter's 
beauties is keeping people later and later, even to the middle of .January. 
So, Berkshire has become dear to a great many of the people who come; 
here, because here they have established homes, built fine houses, and 
bought real landscape views, the paintings of which, in their wealth of 
beauty, would be worth thousands of dollars. One may withstand the 
allurements of all other resorts, but he capitulates to Berkshire as the 
only place choice enough for his country home. 

A New York Tribune correspondent, in 1885, wrote : "Nature certainly 
made one of her most successful efforts when this secluded and restful 
region in Western Massachusetts was planned and brought forth. No- 
where else do little hamlets, with their white church spires pointing 
skyward, seem to nestle so cozily and contentedly among the hills ; no- 
where else do the lakes and rivers hold such fiattering mirrors for the 
mountains, and nowhere else does Nature get from Jack Frost so fine a 
cloth of gold as she throws over the bosom of these hills." 

Again, it may be claimed solely for Berkshire that no other region 
ofters such varied inducements to visitors, guests and new residents. 
They range from simple farm-house accommodations to hotels that are 
as delightfully agreeable homes as hotels can be, and where the fare is 



18 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 

high class ; the temporary society is from that of people of quite limited 
means, who come to stay two weeks, for instance, to the elite of fashion 
and wealth, who have their homes here with all luxurious accessories. 
Old people can find seclusion and quiet ; children, isolation, where they 
will be tolerated ; brain workers, rest and recreation ; the man or woman 
of society and fashion, congenial surroundings ; houses can be hired for 
family use ; it is the place for the tourist as well as the resident — for the 
wheelman, the pedestrian, the horseback rider and tourists in carriages ; 
while it is much sought for camping out locations. One can find village 
life, with many villages to select from, or he can enjoy farm life ; he may 
pick from hotels or from private families ; he may keep house or board ; 
and he may live upon mountains and hills or in valleys. 

The roads of Berkshire have for years been known for their excellence. 
The drift gravel that is found in abundance has been freely used where 
the roads were naturally heavy with mud or sand, and the consequence 
is that everywhere — upon mountains as well as along valleys — the roads 
are smooth and hard, free from cobble stones, ruts and mud holes, and 
upon the main lines of travel as good as the roads in any park in the 
country. For this reason wheelmen are numerous, and riding in carri- 
ages covers the whole region to every nook and corner. Among the many 
things for which Berkshire is pre-eminent, this is a conspicuous one, and 
a favorite attraction with city peoj^le. 

The manufacturing establishments that are in Berkshire are so situ- 
ated as to be in no wise offensive ; the typical factory village is nowhere 
to be found, but, on the contrary, the work-people generally live in neat 
home«. Mills are situated in narrow, deep valleys, where they are hidden 
from view. In paper manufacture Berkshire has been famous for eighty- 
five years ; wood pulp was first used successfully in paper-making in 
Lee ; the quality of the correspondence papers made at Ualtrm and South 
Lee, and of the record papers made at Dalton and Adams, is hardly 
equaled anywhere in the world, for reasons that are peculiar to the 
location. 

The excellent advanced schools that are in Berkshire afford such 
opportunities for education, that homes, permanent and temporary, are 
sought here by many people who have young children. In Great Bar- 
rington is a well taught High School, the Sedgwick Institute for boys, 
and the Housatouic Hall School for girls ; in Stockbridge, the Williams 
Academy and I'rof. Hoffman's School for young men ; in Lenox, Prof. 
Ballard's Lenox Academy ; in Lee, Pittsfield, Adams, North Adams and 
Williamstown, excellent High Schools — in the last town, Williams College, 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 19 

and Glen Seminary for young ladies ; in South Williamstown, Greylock 
Institute ; in Lakeville, Ct., the Eeid School ; Chickering's Commercial 
College, Maplewood Institute, and Miss Saulsbury's School, for young 
ladies, in Pittsfield ; in Xorth Adams, Drury Academy ; and the Bobbins 
School in Norfolk, Ct. Besides good schooling for children, for wealthy 
people who are the victims of municipal extravagance and thievery in 
cities, Berkshire has many towns where taxes are light and the rate low. 

In freedom from contagious diseases Berkshire has always been for- 
tunate ; though it is almost a suburb of dense populations, yet it has a 
seclusion and a situation off the main lines of travel, so that the intro- 
duction of disease from without is not easy. Cholera never penetrated 
the region, though it came to the outskirts. Within the region the 
germs of disease do not thrive, partly on account of the altitude and the 
dry air, and partly because the sanitary conditions are high and the pre- 
cautions prompt and prescient. Every town has a board of health, and 
several villages have sewage systems. The people understand that filth 
furnishes nourishment for disease germs, and are careful to remove it to 
harmless places. The climate is dry, cool and bracing ; the elevation of 
the country has the effect of stimulation, it accelerates the breathing and 
the circulation, and gives tone to the nervous system. The disease most 
benefited is consumption, and the registration reports show that the mor- 
tality from this disease is less in Berkshire than in any other county of the 
state, being little more than half what it is in some of the maritime coun- 
ties. For children the air is extremely favorable ; cholera infantum, the 
summer scourge of cities, is rarely seen, and other summer diseases are 
comparatively rare and mild. The temperature is two to six degrees 
lower than it is in the lower country on the east and west. 

The drinking water is every where of extreme purity ; the principal 
villages get their water in pipes from mountainous springs, and where 
this is not done each family gets water from a spring or excellent well. 
The drinking water is never a source of disease. 

AVithin a very few years Bei'kshire has been getting a reputation for 
architecture. A large portion of the houses, of course, are in the usual 
siyle of country architecture, but scattered among them are many beau- 
tiful buildings that will surprise city people, accustomed as they are to 
square, monotonous, roofless houses. Mrs. Mai'k Hopkins's million dollar 
house in Great Barrington will rank among the finest in the United 
States ; the Congregational Church there is a beauty, and contains the 
l)est organ on the continent, and the parsonage adjoining is excelled 
hardly anywhere. In Stockbridge, St. Paul's Church is one of the 



20 



THE r.OOK OF BERKSHIRE. 




i.-Lake Garfield. 2.-Congregational Church, Lenox 3 -Ancient House, Soutb 
Egremont. 4 -Sage's Ravine, Mount Washington. j.-Flantain Pond, Mount Wash- 
ington. 



THE BOOK OF BEKKSHIRp:. 21 

choicest ones in the country, and among notable dwelling houses are 
those of Joseph H. Choate, the Rev. Henry M. Field, the late Henry Ivi- 
son, Lucius Tuckerman, Charles E. Butler, C. F. Southniayd, the Town 
Offices, and others. In Lenox beautiful and superb dwellings lie on every 
hand, in locations commanding charming views : only a few of these 
houses can be mentioned — that of Charles Lanier, Mrs. McKim's, the 
houses of W. D. Sloane, Dr. 11. C. Greenleaf, F. A. Schermerhorn, John 
E. Parsons, William R. Robeson, William B. Shattuck. The new Trinity 
Church in Lenox is notable. Dwelling house architecture in Pittsfield 
has fine representatives in W. R. Allen's house and W. S. Milton's house, 
in the Athenaeum, in Mrs. Pollock's house, and many others. Governor 
Weston's house in Dalton, James Renfrew's house in Adams, the new Mor- 
gan building and the Clarke building at Williams College, are among the 
notable buildings, all of which would be given distinction anywhere. 

The geological formation of Berkshire has been the subject of much 
controversy for many years, and has long brought to the region the best 
geologists of the country and enlisted those who lived here — Prof. Amos 
Eaton, Dr. Chester Dewey, Prof. Ebenezer Emmons, Prof. Edward Hitch- 
cock and Prof. James D. Dana. Prof. Dana began to study the rocks in 
1871, and continued with assiduity up to 1885, and he embodied a con- 
densed account of h's conclusions in a paper read before the Berkshire 
Historical and Scientific Society, published in the Berkshire Courier of 
February 11, 188-'j. He sustains Prof. Emmons in these conclusions : 
"That this non-fossiliferous Taconic series was older than those Hudson 
river slates ; older than the lowest fossil bearing rocks of New York ; 
older than the oldest known rock of the New York Silurian, the Potsdam 
sandstone ; therefore a distinct system of rocks, the Taconic System. In 
the geological series, the system, in his opinion, came in between the 
Adirondack rocks, or Archaean, and the Potsdam sandstone, the rock 
directly overlying the Archaean in Northern New York. Thus the name 
of the Taconic Mountains became of wide importance in geological 
science, for geologists abroad, as well as at home, received the announce- 
ment with great interest." 

Besides numerous literary, social and village improvement associa- 
tions in the towns, there are several county societies, to which it would 
be an honor to belong. The Historical and Scientific Society has done 
and is doing better work than any other county society of the kind in the 
country has done. There are three agricultural societies, one of them 
the second best in the state. The Berkshire County Bible Society was 
organized in 1817. nearly the first in the country; the Berkshire and Col- 



22 TUE BOOK OF bekkshikp:. 

iimbia Missionary Society, established in 1708, was probably the earliest 
missionary society organized in this country. The Berkshire Branch of 
the Woman's Board of Missions has about 1,700 members; and there is 
a Berkshire County Sunday School Union. 

While Berkshire has no dense jiopulation, on the other hand it is not 
so sparsely populated as to suffer from paucity of numbers. The popula- 
tion of the county in 1885 was 74,000, and that of the principal towns and 
those in which the visitor is interested, varies from about 14,-500 to 160. 
The sojourner has a choice among villages varying in size from mere 
hamlets to small cities, and among more rural jilaces that descend in 
population, from village suburbs to an isolated farm-house in remote 
regions. 

The model villages of the American continent are in Berkshire, Stock- 
bridge, Lenox, Great Barrington, Sheffield, Williamstown, Pittsfield — 
where can the like of these be found any where in the New World, and 
all within 45 miles of each other '? Indeed, some of these villages are 
absolutely unique; there is only one Stockbridge, no other Lenox. 
Amid the glory of these Hills and valleys, villages have grown that 
lead a vast nation in beauty, in neatness, in picturesqueness, and in 
social composition. 

As Prof. Hitchcock writes, " Where does the traveler meet in any part 
of our land with lovelier spots than Pittsfield, Lenox, Lee, Stockbridge 
and Great Barrington '?" 

The conglomerate public is just discovering Berkshire. The residents 
are not chiefly a set of boarding housekeepers, as the residents of most 
other resorts are, and have taken no pains to give it the glaring, patent 
medicine advertising, so noticeable elsewhere. The rush of the vulgar 
crowd has never contaminated its beloved territory ; the all-prevalent 
air of its singular, inherent, eloquent repose has never be?n broken: — 
and may it never be. It is no place in which to rush around when sight- 
seeing, to be dona in a week or two, but rather to be lived in under such 
a state of receptivity that the peculiar, impalpable exhalation of the 
region shall permeate one's being and transport him to the delights of 
elysian existence. 

Unlike other resorts where a man finds his surroundings agreeable 
wherever he is able to pay for his keeping, Berkshire is composed of 
many distinctive communities where he who enters may find himself a 
sad misfit. One seeking the quiet of Stockbridge, would be oiit of place 
in fashionable Lenox, and if he should mistake Lenox for Mount Wash- 
ington, Cheshire or Becket, he would be in a pitiable situation. Some 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 23 

idea of tlie peculiarities of each place is meant to be conveyed in this 
book, but after all, one may have to live here to know where ho likes it 
best. He cannot toss a cent for choice among Berkshire's varieties. 

The guest will find Berkshire's hotel life most perfect — that is, 
where summer and autumn visitors are in the habit of going. There is 
no landlord here, with a vast building, bragging of its .500 or 1,.500 rooms 
and who rarely comes in contact with his guests ; there is no place where 
the guests jostle each other as strangers and where they shift for them- 
selves, as in large hotels. But, on the contrary, fellow guests become 
acquaintances, associates and friends; the landlord, with perhaps an as- 
sistant, gives personal attention to their wants, and in every way they 
ai'e made to feel at home, and as it were, members of one large family. 
Hotel keeping is an art that has reached a high development in Berkshire. 

The native people of Berkshire compare very favorably, indeed, with 
those of any region or city in the United States. Under good schools, 
reading habits; leisure for study and thought, in the winter at any rate; 
well developed electric, railway and postal communication; and under 
frequent traveling, these people, as a whole, are up with the times; 
they know what is going on in- the world, they are abreast with the 
thought of the age, they live at least in comfort and often in luxury. 
The average well-to-do and wealthy people of the cities who come here, 
expecting to find a native population of country bumpkins, will be sur- 
prised in finding a large portion of the people as cosmopolitan as them- 
selves and many who are decidedly more intelligent. If the people act 
slower than city people do, the latter will be taught a lesson that if life 
is worth living, it is more worth the living when one takes time to de- 
rive the most hajjpiness on the way. The city people who have acquired 
homes here have learned this lesson. 

The nature of the inhabitants of this region and its fitness for the 
residence of literary and of intellectual and cultivated people is attested 
by the famous people who were natives or who were nurtured here, and 
by the distinguished people who have found here a congenial atmos- 
phere. In the early days of Lenox as a resort, there came Nathaniel 
Hawthorne, Frances Anne Kemble, Henry Ward Beecher; John Morell 
left this town eventually to become Chief Justice of the Michigan 
Supreme Court. In Stockbridge, were Jonathan Edwards; the Field 
family when David Dudley, Stephen D., and Cyrus W., were young; G. 
P. R. James; Theodore Sedgwick, Mrs. Charles Sedgwick and Cath- 
erine Sedgwick; here the Rev. Dr. Mark Hopkins was born. In Great 
Barrington, was William Cullen Bryant, the Rev. Samuel Hopkins and 



24 



THE BOOK OF BKRKSHIRE. 



other members of the Hopkins family, from one of whom descended the 
liev. Dr. Mark Hopkins, ex-president of Williams College, president of 
the American Board of Foreign Missions for over thirty years and a vig- 
orovis writer on religious subjects. Sheffield is known as the native 
town of the Rev. Dr. Orville Dewey, of his sister Miss Jerusha Dewey, of 
his daughter Miss Mary E. Dewey; of President Frederick A. P. Barnard 
and of his brother Major General John G. Barnard; of Bishop Janes of 
the Methodist church ; Prof. Geoi'ge F. Root of Chicago, the musician ; 
Judge Daniel Dewey of the Supreme Court; of Daniel Dewey Barnard, 
who was Minister to Prussia from 184!) to 1853. In Xew Marlboro, lived 
that stout defender of Calvinism, the Rev. Jacob Catlin. From Egre- 
mont went Grosvenor P. Lowrey, the New York lawyer. In Pittsfield 
was Herman Melville, Oliver Wendell Holmes; the Rev. William Allen, 
a native, afterwards president of Bowdoin College; Pittsfield is the home 
of Senator Dawes and has been the home of many distinguished politi- 
cians, judn;es and lawyers, among them Governor Briggs, Judges Julius 
Rockwell, James D. Colt and James M. Barker. Governor E. D. Morgan 
of New York was a native of Washington. The Rev. Dr. Barnas Sears was 
a native of Sandisfield, and was for ten years pi-esident of Brown Uni- 
versity; "Josh Billings," was a native of Lanesboro. Mrs. D. H. R. 
Goodale lived on Mount Washington where the childhood of her dnugh- 
ters, the poets, Elaine and Dora R., was passed. In Hinsdale were born 
Governor F. E. Warren, of Wyoming Territory; R. H. White, the Boston 
merchant; A.D.Matthews, Brooklyn's oldest merchant; President W^il- 
liam E. Merriam, of Ripton College; the Rev. Dr. John W. Yeomans, once 
president of La Fayette College. North Adams was for some time the 
home of the llev. T. T. Munger. Col. T. J. Skinner, in Williamstown, 
was for many years Chief Justice of the court of Common Pleas; Daniel 
N. Dewey was long a Probate Judge, and Charles A. Dewey, both from 
Shetfield stock, was a judge of the Supreme Court. 

The mention of these names, that come most readily to mind out of 
many more that have been or are distinguished, shows what kind of 
stock the permanent resident population of Berkshire is and some of 
the distinguished people who have found it a congmial home. Under 
each town, i-eference will be found made to well-known people who have 
summer and autumn homes here. Besides all this, Berkshire has sent 
out a constant stream of young men who have become leading business 
and professional men in New York, Ch'cago and many other places. 

A great gathering of the sons and daughters of Berkshire, who had 
gone into every part of the Union was held at Pittsfield in 1844, when 



THE BOOK OF BEKKSHIRE. 25 

there came to the meeting in person and in spirit a multitude of Berk- 
shire people, of whom iu many ways, the nation has time and again had 
abundant reasons for being proud. Governor Briggs was president; the 
Eev. Dr. Mark Hopkins preached a sermon; poems were composed by 
Frances Anne Kemble, Mrs. Lydia H. Sigourney, Oliver Wendell Holmes, 
William Pitt Palmer and the Rev. Dr. William Allen. The oration was 
delivered by the Hon. Joshua A. Spencer of Oneida County, X. Y. ; and 
speeches and sentiments were given by Drake Mills, New York; Judge 
Charles A.Dewey, Northampton; Thomas Allen, St. Louis; Theodore Sedg- 
wick, New York; the tragedian, Macready; the Rev. Dr. Homan Humphrey, 
president of Amherst College; the Rev. Dr. Orville Dewey, New York; 
Prof. Chester A. Dewey, Rochester, N. Y.,;Josiah Quiucy, New Hamp- 
shire; David Dudley Field, and others. The assemblage was made up of 
a large number of jjeople who were born in Berkshire or had spent a con- 
siderable portion of their lives here, among them being many distin- 
guished people. 

It need not be surprising, then, that the county abounds in literary 
and social clubs, in village improvement associations and in public and 
private libraries. The face of nature here is a stimulus to thought, to the 
imagination, to the higher feelings and emotions. If Berkshire renews 
the vitality of the tired worker who seeks recreation, so it creates and 
strengthens genius, talent and proficiency. In other resorts there is 
nothing beneath the outward show to hold the visitor after the effect 
becomes monotonous; but beneath the forms of beauty and majesty and 
harmony, of which one here never tires, there is something that consti- 
tutes an abiding place, a Promised Land, a fixed country home, 

"For Childhood's opening bloom, 

For sportive Youtli to stray in. 
For Manhood to enjoy its strength, 

And Age to wear away in." 



XHB FUXURB OF BBRKSHIRE. 

The future of no part of the country is more apparent than that of 
Berkshire. While other resorts see only a horde of sight-seers, a stream 
of humanity that hurries along as if in a public street, Berkshire, while 
entertaining transients, will be the great country home of the wealthy 
and cultivated people of New York, Philadelphia, Boston, Albany, Hart- 
ford, New Haven and the East. The tendency this way has been ap- 



26 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 



parent for many years, but never so much as lately. The price of land 
for agricultural purposes is worth on the average only about $50 an acre; 
but where the site commands a fine view or has a social value, the price 
has already gone up to hundreds of dollars an acre, and the time will 
come when thousands will be the measure of value outside of villages, as 
it is now within them. Within the distance of a day's ride on a railway, 
the 10,000,000 people of the present day,- who will probably double their 
number in thirty years, are sending here increasing numbers of country 
home seeker.-s every year, while the visitors of a transient character are 
coming more than ever before to stay a short time in one place or to 
make a tour of the region. Those now living may not live to see the 
time, but that time is surely coming when the sides and tops of every 
hill and mountain here and the best valley locations will all be taken up 
with the houses of the people to whom reference has been made. With 
the influx of this population comes the development of the jesthetic 
emotions in the beauty that is purchased by wealth and the sentiments 
that arise from it, and a development of the region itself, in making its 
treasures more accessible and in converting it into a vast inhabited park, 
charming the senses, invigorating the health, prompting thought and 
imagination, a retiring place for the weary and a pleasure ground for ap- 
preciative thousands. 




IvEXOX. 




T is a conspicuous feature of Berkshire towns 
that though they all owe a kinship to Berk- 
shire characteristics, yet they have differen- 
tiated into individualities. Lenox, Stock- 
bridge, Great Barrington, Williamstown, 
Pittsfield, Lee, Sheffield. Mount Washington, 
New Marlboro' and Egremont will bear as 
strong contrasts among each other in nature 
and in society as each will bear with the 
world external to Berkshire, and yet all are 
distinctively Berkshire towns in their com- 
position. This unlikeness of parts in a gen- 
eral union of underlying constitution entitles 
Berkshire to great distinction as a resort, 
for the peculiarity is not to be found else- 
where. The lavish hand of nature has accomplished this singularity 
for the aspect of the country ; and a strong local feeling, fostered 
by town government and a high spirit of freedom and independence, 
and the inborn talent and capability of the inhabitants, have been 
the means of differentiating the social characteristics. In this general 
movement Lenox bears the impress of an external hand more than any 
other town. It is now owned and regulated principally by people who 
migrate to it for a portion of the year; the native influence has not been 
extinguished, perhaps, but it is all subservient to the new comers. 
Hence Lenox has been moulded into one of the most singular of the 
Berkshire towns, and it has grown into a resort that is quite fittingly 
termed "The Inland Newport." People of wealth and fashion flock to 
it in the summer, and their numbers increase in the autumn, beginning 
about the 1st of September, when the Newport season wanes and when 
many of the people who have been there in the summer travel this way 
with their costly turnouts to take jjossession of their Berkshire homes in 
Lenox or find entertainment at Curtis's Hotel. But Lenox never can 
attain a social character that will in the least obscure the work of nature. 
Here, as in neighboring towns, the beautiful and the picturesque, after 



28 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 

types of their own, admit no rivals. The laj? of earth spreads out in an 
original phase of Berkshire's common beauty, and provokes the pro- 
foundest admiration that never tires. 

The Early Visitors. 

No civilized people can behold Lenox without coveting an incessant 
inspiration of the spirit of its landscape. It lay in the nature of things 
that man could not once behold it without renewing the acquaintance, 
until frequency must end in possession. So Lenox has come to be the 
chief country home resort of the continent, and is rapidly developing in 
the same tendency. Though the town never lay on any great thorough- 
fare, yet, being the shire town from 1787 to 1871, it was early the destina- 
tion of many people who came from a distance beyond the county. Here 
came the judges of the State courts and many distinguished lawyers and 
some witnesses and litigants from all over Xew England and New Ycnk, 
so that the town, let it once be noised about as a thing of beauty and 
worthy of resort, would be called to mind by many people scattered over 
the East as fulfilling all that was said in its praise. An influential part 
of the public was thus made familiar with the town and prepared to ele- 
vate it to renown, if not to visit it for pleasure. 

The discoverer of Lenox was Charles Sedgwick ; that is, he was the 
first discoverer to make his discovery known. Through his culture he 
appreciated the natural aspects of the town, and through his wide ac- 
quaintance he made them known to many people of taste and intelh- 
geuce, who in tarn noised abroad the delightful character of the region. 
Mr. Sedgwick moved to Lenox in 1821, a time that marks the first coming 
of visitors; yet it is doubtful that the very first visitors came through his 
influence. As near as memory serves the o'dest inhabitants, the first 
people to come and stay during the summer were the widow and chil- 
dren of the Rev. Samuel Munson, who was pastor of the Congregational 
church from 1770 to 1793. They were here, it is thought, somewhere 
between 1820 and 1825. About tliat time, also, the Misses Merritt, of 
New York, came to stay during the summer; they were amateur artists, 
and, as they remained season after season, they made many sketches of 
scenery, which they took to New York — so many that one room in their 
house there v\as called "Lenox," where their friends were enthusias- 
tically shown pictures of scenes in their summer home. 

But Charles Sedgwick soon brought greater numbers of people this 
way, and before long cooperating causes brought this charming town to 
the notice of the whole country. The Lenox Academy, incorporated in 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 29 

1808, graduated pupils that returned in after years; Mrs. Charles Sedg- 
wick established a school for girls that brought many noted people to 
town: and the residence of Catherine M. Sedgwick, begun in 1831, gave 
an immense impetus to the movement. 

Influence of the Lenox Academy. 
The Lenox Academy has been and is a famous institution. It has had 
many excellent principals, among them being Matthew II. Buckham,. 
president of the University of Vermont; and among the many men of 
distinction who have been pupils here were the Eev. Dr. Mark Hopkins, 
Judge Henry W. Bishop, the liev. Dr. Henry M. Field, Prof. Charles Joy, 
Anson Jones, once presidtnt of Texas, Charles Sedgwick, Samuel K. 
Betts, who was a United States district court judge, and a long list of 
others. Since September, 1880, Prof. H. H. Ballard, an accomplished 
scholar, has been the principal. In 1875 he organized here a school 
scientific society for the study of natural history, in connection with the 
Lenox High School. This was given the name of the Agassiz Associa- 
tion in 1880, and an invitation from Prof. Ballard was published in the 
St. NicJwlas Magazine to young people to organize branches on the same 
plan as the parent society. The idea spread rapidly and took with both 
young and old, so that, at the present time (1886), there are classes 
in nearly every State and Territory in the L'nion, embracing about 10,000 
members. Each year is adding many more to the number. Special 
courses of study have been conducted by Dr. Marcus E. Jones, of Salt 
Lake City, in elementary botany; by Prof. G. Howard Parker, in ento- 
mology; by Prof. E. L. French, of AVells College, in botanical collecting 
and exchange; by Dr. Charles Everett Warren, of Boston, in practical 
anatomy and physiology; and by Prof. W. O. Ci'osby, of the Boston 
Natural History Society. Three new branches are organizing every 
week, on the average. Of this association, Science says, editorially: 
" The conductors of these enterprises have done something permanent 
and effectual towards spreading a taste for self-culture in an almost new 
sense." A handbook of this association may be got from Prof. Ballard. 
It is to this academy, now eighty-three years old, and its pupils, that 
Lenox owes much of the fame that has gone abroad. 

The Influence of Catherine M. Sedgwick. 

The residence of Catherine M. Sedgwick in Lenox at once made the 

town known to all the reading, literary, and leading people of the day. 

Here Harriet Martineau visited her several times, the last time being in 

183.5. The social features of Lenox under the reign of Miss Sedgwick 



30 THE BOOK OF BEKKSHIKE. 



are feelingly expressed by Fanny Kemble, '^ Our Fanny," as Miss Sedg- 
wick has called her: "Of the society which gathered summer after 
summer to the pleasant hill region, the seat of her family home, at- 
tracted thither even more by the delightful intercourse of its various 
gifted members than by the pure air and fine scenery of Berkshire, Miss 
Sedgwick was the center and soul, dispensing the most gi'aceful hos- 
pitality and doing the honors of her beautiful hills and valleys to her 
visitors with an vuiwearied kindliness and courtesy that must forever 
have combined in their memories the most delightful social intercourse 
with the most charming natural scenery." The last time that Miss Sedg- 
wick was in Lenox was in the spring of 1863. 

In Lenox, Miss Sedgwick wrote the last of her woi-ks: " Live and Let 
Live;" "Home;" "The Morals of Manners;" "The Boy of Mount 
Rhigi," the scene of which lies on the mountain in the northwestern 
part of Salisbury, Ct. ; and "Married or Single." 

Miss Sedgwick took unbounded pride in the preeminent beauty of 
Berkshire. Referring to this, the Editor's Easy Chair of Harper's Maga- 
zine for October, 1867, says: " If some lover of the coast, some devotee 
of the ocean, looked doubtingly upon the pine sheeted hillsides as too 
rigid and monotonous, she knew where to take him to silence his scepti- 
cism by one wide and sufficing glimpse of inland splendor. Nor were her 
pride and confidence misplaced. Returning, haply, after the lapse of 
years, the lover of the sea, who ha(^ been unjust to the real charms of 
the superb Berkshire landscape, recanted wholly as he stood looking 
from the heights of Lenox southward over the lovely lake [Mahkeenac] 
to Monument Mountain, and the soft smooth outline of Taconic in the 
delicate heaven further away. There was no sense of imprisonment in 
the hills, no feeling of oppression, and as his eye turned northward to 
the tranquil dignity of Greylock, it was only to confess that neither 
Bryant, nor Hawthorne, nor Miss Sedgwick, nor Herman Melville, all of 
whom had made their homes in Berkshire, had too warmly jiraised the 
beauty or described the character of its landscape." Miss Sedgwick's 
remains were entombed in the earthly paradise she loved so well — in a 
portion of it set apart for a cemetery, in Stockbridge. The house occupied 
by Miss Sedgwick, and Charles Sedgwick, who owned it, is on Kemble 
street, and is owned by Mrs. Elizabeth Sedgwick Rackemann, who, with 
her family, is to occupy it in the future, after letting it for several years. 
The influence of Miss Sedgwick ujion Lenox is incalculable; she brought 
hither many of the first people of the land, and founded here a literary 

' i.dquarters that endured for many years. 



the book of bekkshikk. 31 

Influence of Mks. Charles Sedgwick's School. 
Another source of Lenox's fame was Mrs. Charles Sedgwick's school. 
She was of the Northampton D wight family, and was a highly cultured 
woman with a Avide and distinguished acquaintance. In 1828 iJie re- 
ceived into her house a few pupils to educate with her own, and this 
was the beginning of the celebrated school that closed only with her life 
in 1864. She wrote several books for children, among them " The Beati- 
tudes," and she contributed to periodical publications. Her school was 
regarded as one of the best, if not the best, in the United States for 
years for the education of girls and young women ; and her pupils were 
accordingly drawn from the wealthy and cultivated people of the day. 
Among the few early pupils that are remembered were Charlotte Cusli- 
man, Harriet G. Hosmer, Lucy Marcy, daughter of Governor Marcy, the 
wife of Chief Justice Brigham, of the Superior Court, Lydia Saltonstall, 
of Salem; Maria Cummings, author of "The Lamplighter;" a daugh- 
ter of John Van Buren ; daughters of Weyman Crow, of St. Louis ; 
Hattie Bellows, of Bellows Falls, Vt. ; Alice Delano, Carrie White, 
Carrie Train. There were eighteen or twenty pupils in all, and their 
parents, relatives and friends often came to the town to visit them, to 
find that the town itself was so rich in natural charms that it must be 
revisited again and again. So came Governor Marcy, John Van Buren 
and other distinguished men. Lady Churchill, wife of the late secre- 
tary for India, was formerly one of Mrs. Sedgwick's pupils as Miss 
Jerome, of New York. 

The Residence of Fanny Kemble. 
Miss Sedgwick had not long been living in Lenox after 1833, the time 
when Frances Anne Kemble first came to this country, before she in- 
duced her to come to Lenox. The great actress has said that she found 
Miss Sedgwick her first friend in this country. Mrs. Kemble came, she 
saw, she was conquered. She worshiped the matchless, outspread, lav- 
ish beauties of nature that she saw here, and annually came to revel in 
their delights. For years she stayed at Curtis's Hotel, but finally 
bought a house that she called " The Perch," situated on Kemble street. 
To have Mrs. Kemble at any place in those days was to distinguish it 
above all others in the United States; where she went, the wealth and 
culture of the country must also go, and when it was known that she had 
found a charming summer country home in Lenox, the town got its first 
decided start as a summer resort. Here Mrs. Kemble came off and on 
for about thirty years. She is .spoken of by Miss Sedgwick in a letter of 



32 THE BOOK OF BEKKSHIRE. 



November IG, 1861, as knitting garments for soldiers. Finally Mrs. Kem- 
ble sold her house, the one now owned by Mrs. Thomson, and after liv- 
ing at the Kneeland place, "Fairlawn," which t'lie hired, and boarding 
at the hotel for several years, she returned to England. But recent re- 
port says that she talks of returning to this country, and that her home 
•will be in Lenox to pass the remainder of her days at the age of 76. If 
she could be buried in the village graveyard, she once snid, " I will not 
rise to trouble any one if they will let me sleep there. I will ask only to 
be permitted once in a while to raise my head and look out upon this 
glorious scene." Mrs. Kemble's cultivated imagination was in harmony 
in Lenox with its natural and social environment, and it is iio wonder 
that her enthusiasm over the town should have endured so long. 

Mrs. Kemble thus writes of the views fi-om her house: " Immediately 
sloping before me, the green hillside, on the summit of which stands the 
house I am inhabiting, sinks softly down to a small valley, filled with 
thick rich wood, in the center of which a jewel-like lake lies gleaming. 
Beyond this valley the hills lie, one above another to the horizon, where 
they scooj) the sky with a broken, irregular outline that the eye dwells 
upon with ever new delight as its colors glow and vary with the ascend- 
ing and descending sunlight, and all the shadowy procession of the 
clouds. In one direction this undulating line of distance is over-topped 
by a considerable mountain with a fine, jagged crest, and ever since 
early morning troops of clouds and wandering showers of rain and the 
all-prevailing sunbeams have chased each other over the wooded slopes 
and down into the dark hollow where the laKe lies sleeping, making a 
pageant far finer than the one Prospero raised for Fei dinaud and Mir- 
anda on his desert island." 

Again Mrs. Kemble describes a scene: " The day is bright and breezy 
and full of shifting lights and shadows playing over a landscape that 
combines every variety of beauty — valleys, in the hollows of which lie 
small hikes glittering like sapphires; uplands, clothed with grain fields 
and orchards, and studded with farm houses, each the center of its own 
free domain ; hills, clothed from base to bi-ow with every variety of 
forest tree; the woods, some wild, some tangled and all but impenetra- 
ble, others clear of underbrush, shady, moss carpeted and sun checkered; 
noble masses of granite rock, great shafts of marble, clear mountain 
brooks; and a full, free, flowing, sparkling river; — all this under a cloud 
varied sky, such as generally canopies mountain districts, the sunset 
glories of which are often magnificent." Mrs. Kemble has published 
three volumes of autobiography and recollections, and a volume of 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. * S-i 



jjoems, among wbicli may be found "Lines Addressed to Young- Gen- 
tlemen Leaving Lenox Academy," and the poem read at the Berkshire 
Jubilee in 1844. 

Residence of Henry Ward Beecher. 

The Eev. Henry Ward Beecher came to Lenox about 1853, and bought 
a house and several acres on a hill towards Lee, since called Beecher 
Hill. General John F. Rathbone now owns the place, and the old house 
has been moved to another site and is now occupied by his farmer. The 
effect of such a region as Berkshire upon Mr. Beecher's imagination and 
feeling can well be imagined. His whole soul went into his adoration, 
and his enthusiasm was boundless. Berkshire was too fine a place to be 
absent from an unnecessary moment, and so often did Mr. Beecher come 
here that his congregation in Brooklyn stood in actual fear that he 
would abandon his church and jjass the remainder of his life in Lenox. 
The members of his church bestirred themselves, and at last prevailed 
upon him to accept a country home in Peekskill after he had spent a few 
seasons here. Mr. Beecher's Berkshire inspiration found expression in 
several of his letters, republished as "Star Papers." He speaks of 
Lenox as " known for the singular purity and exhilarating effects of its 
air and for the beauty of its scenery." " The endless variety of such a 
country never ceases to astonish and please. At every ten steps the 
aspect changes ; every variation of the atmosphere, and therefore every 
hour of the day, produces new effects. It is everlasting company to 
you." He wrote in admiration of the trees of Lenox, of which there 
are 175 to 200 kinds; of the restful effect of the surroundings, and of the 
ministering influence of nature here toward happiness. 

"This is perfect rest," he wrote. " The air is full of birds' notes, of 
insects' hum, of the barn-yard clack of hens and peeping chickens; the 
eye is full of noble outlined hills, of meadow growing trees; of grass 
glancing with light shot from a million dew drops, and of the great 
heavenly arch, unstained with cloud, from side to side without a mote or 
film, filled with silent, golden ether, which surely descends on such a 
morning as this from the very hills of heaven. Angels have flown 
through it and exhaled their joys, as flowers leave their perfume in the 
sultry air. * * * This it is to be transcendently happy." 

Again Mr. Beecher wrote of a morning: "On such a glorious morning 

of a perfect day as this, when all the smoky haze has gone from the 

horizon, when the sun comes up fresh and clear and will go down unred- 

dened by vapor, the mountains come back from their hiding, and I wan- 

3 



34 THE BOOK OK BEUKSHIRE. 

der forth, wondering liow there should be sorrow in the world. * * * 
Each hour is a perfect hour, clear, full and unsated. It is the joy of be- 
ing alive. * * * Such days are let down from heaven." 

Nathaniel Hawthokjse. 

Here, too, came Nathaniel Hawthorne, in 1850, and occupied a house 
on the slope north of Tiake Mahkeenac, in the edge of Stockbridge, now 
owned by W. A. Tappan and generally known as the Hawthorne place. 
Herman Melville came down from Pittsfield, his frequent visitor. G. P. 
E. James came occasionally from Stockbridge, and Fanny Kemble was 
often at the house. She was a daring horsewoman, and it is said that 
she once rode a horse to the very summit of Monument Mountain, a 
most courageous feat. Julian Hawthorne, then a small boy, calls to 
mind a day when she rode to the house in the saddle, and, holding him 
before her, gave him a gallop up and down the road. 

Mr. Hawthorne came here to get from Berkshire what all weary and 
over-worked men can have for the coming after — recuperation. The 
great novelist was soon able to work, and one of his greatest efforts, 
after his " Scarlet Letter," was written in this little red house — "The 
House of the Seven Gables." Mrs. Hawthorne, in describing the sur- 
roundings, uses this language: " Sit down upon the couch, and you will 
see such a landscape out of the window as will charm perpetually; for 
the motion of light and shadow among the mountains and on the lake 
varies the scene all the time. The summer hazes are of exquisite beauty. 
Sometimes clouds hang low upon the mountain sides in beautiful shapes." 

The effect of living here upon Hawthorne is told in his own words: 
■"After such a winter and spring as I have passed, of tranquil and com- 
plete joy, with mountain air and outlines to live upon." But the spring 
climate, of which the least said the better, was rather irritating. 

Hawthorne left Lenox late in the autumn of 18.51, after writing " The 
Wonder Book," many of the events in which had a reality in Lenox, and 
planning and jjreparing liis materials for "The Blithedale Romance." In 
commenting on the literary work in Lenox, Julian Hawthorne writes: 
" Lenox was one of those places where a man might be supposed to 
write because the beauty around him moved him to expression." 

CuRTis's Hotel and Its Guests. 
An important featuie of Lenox for many years has been Curtis's 
Hotel. The front poi'tion of the building was erected in 1829 and called 
the Berkshire Coffee House, designed for the accommodation of judges, 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 35 



lawyers and others coming to court. In 1833 William O. Curtis came 
from a farm in Stockbridge to Lenox, and after some time was engaged in 
staging between liere and Pittsfield and in the livery business till 1853, 
when he bought this hotel. At the time Lenox was already a popular 
resort for people who were choice in their preference, and under Mr. 
Curtis's management the house, in the course of time, gained a reputa- 
tion and a character of the very highest order. In short, such entertain- 
ment here has long been famous, and many are the people, who know 
what the best public house entertainment throughout the world is, who 
can indorse the fact. Mr. Curtis's son, William D. Curtis, has for sev- 
eral years been associated with him, and, indeed, has borne the principal 
duties of management, besides constantly looking after the renting of 
the many cottages in town for the owners, and being a general agent for 
doing all sorts of business transactions for people who do not reside in 
town all the time. William O. Curtis has many interesting reminiscences 
of the noted people who have been at his house or lived elsewhere in 
town during the fifty-three years of his residence here. He taught many 
of the pupils of Mrs. Charles Sedgwick's school how to ride horseback 
when he was a young man, and accompanied them many a mile over the 
delightful roads of Lenox and vicinity. He tells of the innocent frolics 
of school gii'ls, since distinguished, and calls to mind numerous recol- 
lections of Fanny Kemble. He spent days and days with the great 
actress in driving around the country or in fishing. Indeed, a volume 
would be required to specify all that Mr. Curtis can call to mind about 
his noted guests. But, after all, the best informed person in Lenox 
about Lenox affairs and traditions is William D. Curtis, who has stowed 
away a vast amount of information in orderly fashion about the inhabi- 
tants of the town, past and present, the drives for many miles around, 
and everything that pertains to the town. 

The old hotel had long been too small for the demands that were made 
upon its space, until, in 1884, extensive additions and repairs were made, 
and the whole house was put in the best condition. There was built a 
brick addition, double the size of the original hotel, three stories high, 
with attic and cellar. The dining-room is the best lighted and most 
cheerful one to be found in a hotel, with a seating capacity of about 22.5. 
The heat in cool weather comes from fire-places, of which there are many 
in the house, or from steam; the lighting is done with gas; and an elec- 
tric bell system extends through the whole house. Each floor is pro- 
vided with several Brighton water closets in a room perfectly secluded 
from other rooms, and all the plumbing of the house is of fine and in- 



36 THE BOOK OF BKKKSHIRE. 

telligent workmanship. There are three stairways between floors. 
There are several private parlors; and many of the other rooms are 
so made as to be used en suite, if so desired. All walls are of brick, 
the floors are double, and hot and cold water comes to one place on each 
floor, from which place it is carried to rooms. No sewer pipes run into 
living rooms. The ventilation of the house on every floor is fault'ess. 

In one respect, the rooms become better as one ascends to the upper 
floor, and t'lat is in the views of the beauties of nature with which 
Lenox has been so bountifully supj^lied by a prodigal hand. The most 
charming views are obtained from the attic story; the range of vision 
extends as far as the Dome on the south, the West Stockbridge mount- 
ains on the west, Greylock on the north, and the distant mountain tops 
where begins the eastern slope of the valley. The emotional and imagin- 
ative soul can revel in tlie perception of cottages, lakes and woodland, 
mountain, valley, glade and hill, that make Lenox and her surroundings 
such a paradise. There are nearly level places on the roof, where one 
may sit among the ten chimneys and the twenty-four dormer windows of 
the attic chambers, in the shades of evening, and gaze upon the varied 
face of mother Nature and the soft and gorgeous tints of the fading 
skies. 

The table of Curtis's Hotel has long been famous for its excellence, 
and the attendance throughout the house is the most painstaking. The 
Messrs. Curtis have about 250 guests at the height of the season — 
October 1st. In 1885, at that time, there were 81 guests occupying 
rooms in the hotel, and 172 occupying cottages and taking meals at the 
hotel. How little guests crowd upon each other in such a hotel appears 
when it is known that years ago the old part of the hotel and the 
servants' wing used to accommodate 125 to 150 people. The hotel is 
supplied with vegetables from Mr. Curtis's three-acre vegetable garden 
on his large farm, not far fi-om the village, and with milk, cream and 
butter from the choicest dairy. The proprietors own a large livery 
stable, in which sixty to seventy horses and many vehicles of all kinds 
are kept for the uses of the guests and for all the people who may want 
them. 

The hotel has had so many guests of more than common note that 
probably twenty-five pages of this book could not contain their names. 
If, as is maintained by some scientists, the actinic rays of the sun im- 
press our ijhotographs, though unseen, upon the surfaces to which the 
rays are reflected from our faces and forms, what a remarkable array of 
invisible pictures must be spread out upon the walls of the old hotel, — 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 37 



the pictures of the chief justices and judges of the supreme aud supe- 
rior courts for many years, the talented lawyers from all parts of the 
country who practiced before them, Chief Justice Shaw, Governor An- 
drew, John Van Buren, Governor Marcy, of New^ York, Fanny Kemble, 
Charlotte Cushman, Henry Ward Beecher, Xathaniel Hawthorne, Cath- 
erine Sedgwick, Horace Greeley, Dr. Channing, and all the others. 

The registers of the hotel are a treasure of autograph signatures of 
noted people who have been here, most of them as visitors of the town. 
In the register of 1857 are the names of Edwards Pierrepont, Fanny 
Ktmble; Captain, later Commodore, Inman, of the United States navy; 
Harriet G. Hosmer; Horace Gray, Jr., now a judge of the United States 
supreme court; Cassius M. Clay, John Jacob Astor; George S. Boutwell, 
President Grant's Secretary of the Treasury; Chief Justice Shaw, aud, 
most conspicuous of all, the name of James Fiske, Jr., whose frequent 
signatures for several years were made with his dashing pen when he 
stayed here while meeting his various peddlers. During the few subse- 
quent years are the names of Mr. and Mrs. James Ticknor Field; the 
Rev. Dr. George P. Fisher, professor in Yale College; Parke Godwin, 
Horace E. Scudder, Bret Harte, John A. Andrew; C. B. Dalgren, of the 
United States navy; Mrs. Ledyard, mother of the African traveler, and 
so on, with many more. About 1836 Judge David Davis studied law with 
Judge Bishop, and subsequently married a daughter of Judge Walker, 
of this town. 

To this hotel have been Joseph Pulitzer, editor of the New York 
World; the late Frederick T. Frelinghuysen, Secretary of the Treasury; 
General McClellan, Millard Filmore, Jenny Lind, James Russell Lowell, 
Epes Sargeant, Mrs. Mowatt, the actress. The Rev. Dr. W. E. Channing 
delivered an address in town on August 1, 1842, anniversary of the West 
Indian emancipation, his last pubhc address; and the day before he left 
town he had a long ride to Mount Washington, with William O. Curtis 
for driver. On his way to Vermont, where he died a few days there- 
after, Mr. Curtis drove the team that took him as far as Williamstown. 
Dr. Channing came here for his health, and, in endeavoring to get it, he 
saw so much of the country that he wrote to a friend: " We enjoy our 
life here greatly. The country is inexhaustible in pleasant excursions." 
Mr. Curtis calls to mind a memorable time when Kossuth came to his 
hotel, drawn to town by the Sedgwicks. He was then the lion of the 
nation, and that he should come here was reason for thinking that Lenox 
must be a remarkable place. And so it is! One evening there was dan- 
cing at the hotel in honor of Kossuth, and in the distinguished company 



38 THE BOOK OF BEKKSHIRE. 

were Catherine M. Sedgwick, Charles Sedgwick, Judge Bishop, and 
Fanny Kemble. While a guest at this hotel, Charles Sumner courted his 
wife, the widow Hooper, who was living in a neighboring house. Sir 
Edward Thornton, once British minister, has been here, and in 1883 here 
came Sir Sidney and Lady Waterlow, Lord Carrington, and the Earl of 
Cork and Orrery. 

A good idea of who the guests are that now come to Curtis' s Hotel 
may be formed by the stranger from these names of people who have 
been here within a year or so: Sir Lionel Sackville West, British minis- 
ter; Horace Helyar and family, British legation; Th. Roustan, French 
minister; B. Lovenorn, Danish minister; M. Reuterskiold, Swedish min- 
ister; A. Iswolsky, Eussian legation; Count Gyldenstolpe, German lega- 
tion; ex-President Chester A. Arthur; Admiral Jouett, United States 
navy. Among the many well-known families represented are the follow- 
ing in New York: Schermerhorn, Astor, Webb, Leavitt, Winthrop, 
Iselin, Roosevelt, Frelinghuysen, Tompkins, Jones, Barclay, Kane, 
Crocker, Potter, Aspinwall, Goelet, Brown, Thorne, Stuyvesant, Van 
Nest, Folsom, Harriman, Godkin, Parsons, Newbold, Lanier, Barnes, 
Sand, Bradford, Lawrence, Ingraham, Ledyard, Rives, Harper, Pulitzer, 
Dehon, Bartlett, Taller, Draper, Chapin, Liverraore, Trevor, Egleston, 
Delafield, Sloane, Marie, Johnson, Kneeland, Moller, Van Auken, Collier, 
Haven, Warren, Bouvier, Carey, Livingston. In Boston: Shaw, Hunni- 
well, Perkins, Sargent, Brooks, Meyer, Lee, Brimmer, Higginson, Whar- 
ton, Otis, Appleton, Saltonstall, Endicott, Armory, Winthrop, Minot, 
Sear, Lawrence, Curtis, Thayer, Silsbee, Gray, Rotch, Adams, Kuhn, 
Beebe, Chadwick, etc. In Philadelphia: Rogers, Biddle, Mason, Meigs, 
Struthers, Devereux, Adams, etc. In Troy: Green, Griswold, Ogden, 
Warren, Burden, etc. 

The First Country Homes for City People. 
In the establishment of country homes in Lenox of people from cities, 
the pioneer is thought to have been Mrs. Sarah G. Lee, of New Orleans, 
who bought a home here about 1837; John Brown came and built the 
house subsequently bought by Fanny Kemble, in 1840. Within a few 
years, before 1850, came at brief intervals Samuel G. Ward about 1843, 
Wickham Hoffmann, Ogden Haggerty in 1845, E. J. Woolsey and William 
H. Aspinwall, all of New York, and Russell S. Cook, of Boston. Ed- 
wards Pierrepont, who had been here for many seasons, finally bought 
property, and so did his father-in-law, Mr. Willoughby. William A. 
Tappan, of Boston, was also one of the early comers to buy a home. 



THE BOOK OF BEEKSHIBE. 39 

As long ago as 1844, Barbei-'s history of Massachusetts towns thus re- 
fers to Lenox: "The refined state of society in this place, the fine 
mountain air and scenery, and the superior accommodations at the 
hotel, all render Lenox a most desirable place of resort during the warm 
season." But earlier than this, in the first quarter of the century. Prof. 
Silliman, in his tour from Hartford to Quebec, speaks of Lenox as "a 
town of uncommon beauty. Lenox has fine mountain air, and has 
equally fine mountain scenery. Indeed, it is one of the prettiest of our 
inland towns, and, even in the view of an European traveler, it would 
appear like a gem among the mountains." 

Full List of Homes. 

The many homes of the people who have sought Lenox for its beauties 
and society, will now be briefly mentioned and located as well as can be 
by taking them in order, beginning at the center of the village and going 
out on each of the various streets that radiate therefrom. 

The Egleston house, opposite the hotel, was built about 1700 by the 
grandfather of the present owner for the former's father-in-law, General 
Paterson. It has had the successive ownership of Judge Bishop, Edwanls 
Pierrepont, and Thomas Egleston, and is now owned by a son of the last 
named, Thomas Egleston, who spends the season he.re. The house has 
been considerably repaired and overhauled. 

Next beyond, the house that Mrs. Lee, the pioneer, built, is now owned 
by Mrs. Charles Kneeland, of New York, somewhat remodeled, and 
called " Fairlawn." 

Continuing down West street, Qn the same side we come to the 
"Cushman Villa," built about 1860 by Mrs. F. R. Beck, of New York, 
who owned and occupied it till her death. It was bought, about 1875, by 
Charlotte Cushman, who died soon after. It was then sold to Emma 
Steblins, the sculptor, and after her death it passed into the hands of 
her sisters, Mrs. Garland and Mrs. Fleming, both of New York, and Mrs. 
F. R. Tilton, whose husband is an artist in Rome. It is occupied at vari- 
ous times by the owners. 

The Judge Bishop house, on the West street corner, opposite the 
Egleston house, built about 185.5, has always remained in the family, 
and is now owned by his son, H. W. Bishop, of Chicago, who lives in it 
during the summer. 

The house beyond, owned by Miss Allen Parish, of New York, and 
lately remodeled by her, was built about 1860 by the late county treas- 
urer, George J. Tucker. Miss Parish comes here every summer. 



40 TUE BOOK OF BEKKSHIRE. 

The Hooper house, built about 1865 by Miss Alice Hooper, of Boston, 
is now owned by her sister, Mrs. T. K. Lothrop, of Boston, and is rented 
for a term of five years to Henry T. Sloane, of New York. 

"The Elms," on the south side of West street, owned by W. E. Kobe- 
son, from Boston, was obtained from Prof. Salisbury, of Yale College, 
who bought it from William Ellery Sedgwick, the builder of the house 
about 1855, and a permanent resident while he lived here. Mr. Robeson 
lives in town about half the year, and has a taxable residence here. 

The house of William B. Shattuck, of New York, is an exceedingly 
fine one, on the south side of West street. The first house built on the 
place dates early in the century. The property was bought about 1865 
by Dr. E. J. Dunning, of New York, who sold to Mr. Sliattack in 1883. 
The present owner, who is a season resident, spent about $50,000 on the 
place in 1885 in building a fine new house, and in providing such belong- 
ings as a bowling alley, tennis court, and so on. 

We now come to houses at the farther end of West street and around 
the north end of Lake Mahkeenac. Here Henry A. Barclay, of New 
York, has his " Bonnie Brae," where he built a fine house in 1885. His 
stable is considered the best in town. Fronr this house and the others 
in this part of the town the outlook is most enchanting. 

Miss Cecile Bristed, of New York, who had often been to Lenox, built 
a pretty cottage at the base of Bald Head Mountain in 1885, and called 
the place " The Orchard." 

" Lakeside," on Lake Mahkeenac, was owned several years by Charles 
Astor Bristed, and, since his death, by his widow. The house was 
burned in 1885. 

Samuel G. Ward, of New York, owns " Oakswood," where he built a 
house about 1878, after being absent from town fur several years. It is a 
beautiful place, with a fine oak grove back of the house. 

George Higginson, Jr., from Boston, who is a permanent resident and 
lives here nearly all the year, owns a place with an enchanting outlook, 
which he bought about 1860. His land extends down to Lake Mahkeenac. 

The " Tanglewood " of Mrs. Caroline Tappan, of Boston, is near the 
Hawthorne house. She came here before 1850. 

Across the way is a little red house, formerly occupied by Hawthorne, 
and now owned by William A. Tappan, from Boston, who came to Lenox 
before 1850 and who lives here throughout the A\hole year. Stockbridge 
people ai'e very particular to have it known that the house is in their 
town; however, it is a Lenox house in everything but the accident of a 
town boundary. 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 41 

Near the lake, William S. Bnllard, of Boston, has his "Highwood," 
which he bought from S. G. Ward about 1860. 

We return to the hotel now, and proceed along billy South street. S. 
Parkman Shaw, from Boston, several years ago built a house, which he 
occupies most of the year. He has become a permanent resident. 

Mrs. Burton N". Harrison has a lease for a term of years of a house 
built by F. W. Rackemanu several years ago, and comes to town every 
season. 

Alfred Devereux, of Philadelphia, a few years ago bought a house 
half a mile south of the center, and repaii-ed it for summer and autumn 
residence. 

Alfred Gilmore, from Scranton, Pa., is now a permanent resident here 
on his "Lithgow Farm," which he bought from Edwards Pierrepout 
about 1870. 

A handsome house and extensive gi'ounds, bought several years ago 
from J. F. D. Lanier, are the summer and autumn liome of Mrs. Joseph 
White, of New York, opposite to the house next mentioned. 

The "Allen Winden " of Charles Lanier, of New York, is one of the most 
sightly places in town, on toj) of a high hill. The views fi-om this and 
other houses on this hill are truly ravishing. The house is a costly one, 
built in 1882. 

On the Judge Walker place, called " Yokun Farm," live Richard Good- 
man, who has been here many years, and his son, Richard Goodman, Jr. 
The old house is a fine relic of the olden time, from which modern archi- 
tects have drawn ideas. The Messrs. Goodman take great interest in 
town affairs, and Mr. Goodman, the junior, is a constant writer on agri- 
culture, cattle breeding, and many other topics. Both have long been 
permanent residents. 

The "Interlaken" of D. W. Bishop, of New York, on the east side of 
the road, was bought by him about 1875. Thi'ee lakes are visible from 
it: Laurel Lake on the southwest, and, nearly to the west, Lily Pond 
and Lake Mahkeenac. 

On the west side of the road, what promises to be the finest house in 
Berkshire, except Mrs. Hopkins's house in Great Barrington, is the one 
now in course of completion (spring of 1886) for W. D. Sloane, of New 
York. It is an exceedingly large house, 160 feet by 100, and costing a 
good fortune. The grounds were laid out by Frederick Law Olmstead, 
sanitary and drainage matters were looked after by Col. George E. War- 
ing, of Newport, and the furnishings are by Davenport, of Boston. 
Eight miles of tile are used in drainage. A system of water supply has 



42 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 



been made for Mr. Sloane and Mr. Goodman; water is forced from Lily 
Pond, a distance of 2,000 feet, to an elevation of 300 feet to a large stone 
reservoir. The house will be ready for occupancy this season. Mr. 
Sloane paid $500 an acre here for 100 acres. 

Towards half a mile south of this house, on the east side of the Stock- 
bridge road, is the house of Philip J. Sands, of New York, who has spent 
the summer here at "Glad Hill" for the three years during which the 
house has been in existence. The view toward Laurel Lake is a master- 
piece. 

On the opposite side of the road is the "Merrywood" of Charles Bui- 
lard, from Boston, who has lived here since 1883, before which time he 
lived with his father, W. S. Bullard, whose home has been mentioned. 

Taking the cross-road that leads from the Stockbridge road to Lenox 
Furnace, the first place is the " Larchmont" of Mrs. Madeline Schenck, 
from New York, and now a permanent resident, who built here abovit 
1881. 

Near by is the " Nowood " of B. S. Chapin, of New York, who bought 
the premises in 1885, after having hind houses in town for several sea- 
sons. He paid $18,000 for thirty acres. 

Opposite "Nowood" is the late F. W. Rackemann's place, which Ins 
been rented to Dr. William IL Draper, of New York, for several seasons. 
It is a pretty cottage built in 1880 to rent. 

Between this road and Laurel Lake a fine stock farm of 150 acres is 
owned by Robert Goelet, of New York, who has spent every summer 
and autumn at Curtis's Hotel for many years. He bought this about 
1875. Fine horses are reared here for his own stables, and there is also 
a good herd of Jersey cattle. 

At the junction of this cross-road with the Lee road is the "Laurel 
Lake Farm " of John O. Sargeant, of New York, which he bought a few 
years ago. 

Beginning at the upper end of Kemble street, the first house beyond 
Trinity church on the left is the house owned by the Rev. Dr. A. J. Ly- 
man, of Brooklyn, a native of Lenox, whose father was a teacher in the 
Academy. It is generally rented. 

On the right-hand side of the street is the Sedgwick place, now owned 
by Mrs. Elizabeth Sedgwick Rackemann, who, with her family, will here- 
after occupy it, after having rented it for several years. 

Further down the street, on the right, is " The I'erch " of Mrs. Ellen 
L. Thomson, of New York. It was Fanny Kemble's old place, built by 
John Brown in 1840; she gave it to her daughter, the wife of Dr. Wistei-, 



THE BOOK OF BEBKSHIKE. 43 

of Philadelphia, who sold it to the present owner. The house was the 
home of one of the first Lenox home seekers, and has been much im- 
proved since it was built. 

Taking up Walker street, the house at the east corner of Walker and 
Church streets is that of D. W. Bishop, of New York, which is to be 
rented. He paid $21,000 for it in 1885. 

Opposite this is the house of John Struthers, of Philadelphia, who 
built it in 1882. 

East of the Club house, a house was built for Mrs. M. E. Rogers, of 
Philadelphia, in 1885, who is the summer occupant. 

The second house beyond is that of Mrs. Robert Shaw Oliver, of 
Albany, who has lived in it, but who rents now to William B. Bacon, 
from Boston, a permanent resident. The house was owned by Mrs. 
Ogden Hoffman, of New York, several years ago. 

The next house is General F. C. Barlow's, which was built for him 
several years ago. He has a fine view noithward, including Greylock. 

On the opposite side is " Ventfort," which Secretary of the Navy Wil- 
liam C. Whitney holds imder a five-year lease. It is the Haggerty place, 
one of the earlj^ country homes in the town, now owned by Mrs. Ogden 
Haggerty. It has some of the finest trees and one of the best lawns in 
■town. 

A very fine home is the *' Pine Croft " of F. A. Schermerhorn, of New 
York, on the sou.th side of the road. The house, built by his mother, is 
large, and the grounds are extensive, including a heavy forest. He owns 
400 acres, some of them comprising a fai-m, on which he breeds the best 
horses for his stable. 

On the Lee road. Captain John S. Barnes, United States navy, of New 
York, has his " Coldbrook Farm." He built the house in 1882, and added 
thereto in 1885. 

On Beecher Hill, General John F. Rathbone, of Albany, has a house for 
summer residence, which was built about 1865. Mr. Beecher's house has 
been moved down into the valley, and is now occupied by General Rath- 
bone's farmer. The place, formerly known as " Blossom Farm," is now 
called "Wyndhurst." 

The Dorr place, " Highlawn," on top of the hill, one-half mile from 
Lenox Furnace, was built by Russell Cook, of Boston, near 1842, who was 
one of the early men to get a country home here, on one of the finest 
hills in Berkshire. The lawn is one of the best in Lenox, and has the 
best specimens of foreign and native trees in town. The heirs of George 
and Francis Dorr own the property and rent it. 



44 THE BOOK OF BKRKSHIKE. 

On East road, which runs north and south about a mile east of the vil- 
lage, is the "Sunset Farm" that Edward Delafield bought about 1875. 
His widow owns it and occupies it summers. 

On the same road, south of the road to Lenox Station, is the home of 
R. S. Dana, of New York, who built the house about 1875. He has a fine 
stable of fast horses. 

On Yokun avenue, which runs from West street north, is the house of 
Miss Clementina Furniss, of New York, at " Edgecomb," built about 
1880. The house is noted about town for its beautiful furnishings. From 
the houses on this avenue, the views south and west are superb. 

Next to this is the " Gusty Gables " of Miss DeP. Carey, of New York, 
built for her about 1880. This attractive cottage was occupied by Morris 
K. Jesup, of New York, in the season of 1885, while the owner was in 
Europe. 

George W. Folsom, of New York, has a beautiful place on this avenue, 
at " Sunny Ridge," which he occupies in the summer and autumn; the 
house was built in 1884. 

John E. Parsons, of New York, came to Lenox a long time ago, and in 
1875, on the west side of Yokun avenue, built a house, to which he made 
extensive additions in 1885. The place is called "Stonover." 

On the same side of the avenue, north, is the house of Henri M. Braem^ 
of New York, the Danish consul, which he built about 1875. 

Still farther along is one of the notable houses of the town, at " Windy 
Side," that of Dr, R. C. Greenleaf, from Boston, who now makes Lenox 
his permanent home. This house, built about 1875, has a very large 
music room, with a Roosevelt organ and an enormous fire-place; the 
whole house is furnished in exquisite .taste. 

Cliffwood street, or the Lebanon road, as it is also called, affords a 
beautiful outlook toward the southwest. Beginning at Main street, 
Prof. J . S. Schanck, of Princeton College, occupies a house on the left, 
built 75 years ago or more. 

"Hope Cottage " has been rented to Henry P. Egleston, of New York, 
for a term of years. 

On this avenue Dr. Barnard Mackay, of New York, built a house about 
1880, which he occupies summers. 

Winchell cottage has been rented to Henry Chauncey, of New York, for 
a term of years. He remained all the winter of 1885-6. 

On Chffwood avenue, also, Mrs. J. W. Biddle, of Philadelphia, bought 
a summer home about 1880. 

A queer house on the south side of this avenue is owned by Mrs. Charles 



THE BOOK OF BEKKSHIRE. 45 

F. McKim; it was built for her and her sister, Mrs. George Van L. Meyer, 
in 1885. 

Returning to Main street and going north, the first houses above tlie 
hotel are the " Elm Cottages " of George G. Haven, of New York, one 
occupied by himself and the other by his mother, both houses built 
about 1880. 

The Bennett cottage is rented to Henry S. Leavitt, of New York, for 
1886. 

The Platner house is rented for a term of years to Mrs. William C. 
Wharton, of Boston. 

The Wright cottage is let to Mrs. Francis B. Ellison, of Boston, for a 
term of years. 

The Tucker cottage is rented for 1886. 

Ambrose C. Kingsland, of New York, has hired the Cook cottage for 
1886. 

Miss May Tucker, of New York, occupies her cottage on " Chestnut 
Hill," which she built in 1884. 

The house at " Hillside " was established about 1870 by Mrs. Grace M. 
Kuhn, of Boston, who occupies it during the season. 

The Loring house, owned by Mrs. E. S. Dana, of New York, at the head 
of Main street, is rented every year. 

The Newton cottage, built in 1883, was occupied by Mrs. Marshall O. 
Roberts, of New York, in 1885, and is rented every year. 

The extensive estate of "Cliffwood" is owned by Mrs. E. J. Woolsey, 
of Astoria, L. I. The house was built by E. J. Woolsey and William H. 
Aspinwall many years ago. The estate is a natural park of 500 acres, 
taking in the whole of a ridge of woods running from the Congregational 
church to West Mountain. From this hill there is a kaleidoscope of 
views, north and south. The drives are eight miles in length, and there 
are three main entrances. The house may be seen from the lower end of 
the county and from adjacent Connecticut. 

Following up the Pittsfield road, the first house is that of Henry Nay- 
lor, of New York, which he built in 1883. 

William H. Bradford, of New York, has an estate that embraces five 
farms, bought in 1882. His laud has a mile of street frontage. The name 
of this home is " Wayside." 

Col. R. T. Auchmuty, from New York, is a permanent resident at 
"The Dormers," and is a leading man in town affairs. He came here 
many years ago, and bought three farms. He has been very active in 
promoting the welfare of the town, in the construction of the sewer sys- 



46 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 

tem, in getting water for public and pinvate use ; he has been a selectman 
several times, is a member of the school committee, he was one of the 
prime movers in organizing the Lenox Club, and he was chairman of 
the building committee of Trinity church. About 1874 he built eight cot- 
tages on " Sunset Terrace," all under one roof, designed for a hotel, and 
had a restaurant near them. William D. Curtis managed the enterprise, 
but the buildings were burned in 1879 and never rebuilt. Lenox owes a 
great deal to the public spirit of Col. Auchmuty. 

The houses building in the spring of 1886, and to be built during the 
year, are as follows : The most noteworthy one is W. D. Sloane's, already 
mentioned. Dr. F. P. Kinnicutt, of Xew York, is building a house on 
Cliffwood street, on five acres of land bovight from Dr. Greenleaf ; Wil- 
liam B. Bacon, of Boston, on Cliffwood street, on five acres of land 
bought from Dr. Greenleaf; Alexander J. Leith, of New York, on Cliff- 
wood street, where he bought ten acres for $10,000 ; Morris K. Jesup, of 
New York, on Cliffwood street, on six acres of land bought from D. W. 
Bishop for $10,000. These represent the average annual increase. 

Land Prices and Purchases. 

In 188.5, land was bought at high prices by temporary residents. G. G. 
Haven, of New York, bought 30 acres in six large plots, called Yokun 
Park, on Kemble street, for $42,000, from K. C. Winthrop, Jr., of Boston. 
The land is divided into building lots, and will be sold. D. W. Bishop 
paid $16,000 to E. J. Dunning for Dunning Hill, overlooking Lake Mah- 
keenac. Mr. Bishop also bought part of the Morell farm, and the Buck 
farm, 18 acres of meadow and woods, from G. O. Peck, and two tracts of 
land on the Stockbridge road from George Butler. Mrs. R. S. Dana, of 
New York, bought a house and half acre of land, at the corner of Main 
and Hubbard streets, for $6, .500, William K. Rogers, of New York, 
bought an acre and a half on Sunset avenue for $5,000. 

Real estate prices in Lenox have gone up to astonishing figures for a 
country place. The average price per acre for all the land sold in 1885 
was $933, not including house values enough to materially affect the 
figures. Applications for land purchase are constantly coming in from 
those who want to establish homes here. The increase in land prices 
"has been enormous. Mrs. Thomson sold for $21,000 what she paid $12,000 
for a few years before. About 1853, Judge Bishop sold the Egleston 
place for $3,000, because the assessors taxed it to that amount, and he 
thought that he was getting a high price. In 1885, this property sold for 
$25,000, and the place is worth at least $30,000. 



THE liUOK OF BEIUvSHlEE. 47 

In 1886 the number of homes that people from cities own in Lenox 
and occupy to the exclusion of other homes, or for a season every year, 
or nearly so, is 04. A few of these are rented now and then a year, 
because of the absence of the owner in Eui'ope, perhaps, or elsewhere; 
including these and the houses that are regularly let every year, the 
total number of rented cottages in J886 is 60. 

There are half a dozen boarding-houses in the village, where guests 
are taken. Besides these, six or eight coachmen's boarding-houses may 
be found, a kind of accommodation peculiar to Lenox. 

Drives and Walks. 

The drives and walks in and around Lenox are incomparably lovely. 
A large list of the drives, with distances appended, will be found else- 
where in this volume. To cliaracterize the peculiar charms of each one 
would take many pages. Whatever way one turns, the variety will be 
found inexhaustible and the beauty exquisite. Eight roads radiate from 
the village, connecting with a network of roads without, so that every 
drive out has a return by some other way. The roads of the town and of 
the towns up and down the great valley are most of them in perfect con- 
dition, and all are better roads than can be found in any other country 
region in the Union. An interesting drive or walk may be made to Lenox 
Furnace, two and a half miles distant, to see the process of glass making. 

A few walks may here be specified by way of introduction. The most 
attractive ones, perhaps, are through the Woolsey estate, where a half 
dozen walks may be had from one and a half to six miles in length out 
from the village and back. The "Ledge" is a favorite spot, three- 
quarters of a mile out. 

The roads in any direction afford charming walks to any desired distance. 

The "Pinnacle," one mile out, on W. O. Curtis's "Pinnacle Farm," 
affords pretty views from its wooded top. 

Walks are made to Tucker Hill, one-half mile out east of the Congre- 
gational church. 

Through the Schermerhorn woods, one-half mile distant, the walk is 
very refreshing on a hot day, through the dark aisles of the giant pines. 

Lily Pond, through the Lanier woods, is another resort, a mile and a 
half distant. 

To the top of Bald Head Mountain, two and a half miles out, is a walk 
that will always leave an impression. The view is one of the best in 
Berkshire. 

On the North Lenox mountain, four miles distant, the scene is very 



48 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 

fine. JsTear this, four and a half miles distant, is Yokun's Seat, 2,080 
feet liigli, tlie liighest mountain in town, with extensive view. 

Several walks are made to the Housatouic River, two and a half miles 
off, to Laurel Lake, three miles away, and to the head of Lake Mah- 
keenac, two miles distant, all exceedingly beautiful. 

Social Features. 

The favorite game among the younger people is tennis, which is played 
at many private courts and at the court of the Lenox Club, than which 
there is no finer. Archery is indulged in to some extent. 

The entertainments given by those who live in cottages consist of lawn 
parties, archery meets, tennis matches, breakfasts, dinners, dancing, and 
musicales, the last mostly at the Ladies' Club or the Lenox Club. The 
social features of Lenox long ago attained a character and a reputation 
that have become so well known as to need but a few words here in the 
Avay of calling up some of the doings of the season of 1885. Among 
society people Lenox is a continuation of Newport, from which place 
people come about the 1st of September. Ex-President Arthur was the 
social lion of the town for several weeks, and was frequently at the din- 
ner and tea parties that are a prominent feature of the town. He became 
such an admirer of Lenox that he prolonged his stay beyond the time 
originally contemplated. Secretary of the Navy Whitney entertained 
many friends, among them being William C. Endicott, Secretary of War. 
At Curtis' s Hotel were the family of the late Frederick T. Frelinghuysen, 
Secretary of State; Minister Th. de Bounder, from Belgium; Sir Arthur 
and Lady Aylmer ; Sir Arthur Guest; John A. Kasson, ex-minister to Ger- 
many and Austria; Frank Thompson, president of the Pennsylvania Rail- 
road; Admiral and Mrs. Upshur and Captain Carter, U. S. N. Several 
elaborate weddings were the excitement of their time. Coaching parties 
were frequent, one going on a trip to Richfield Springs and Cazenovia, 
and another being made by some of the members of the New York 
Coaching Club, who rode from New Hamburg, on the Hudson, and were 
the guests of their associate, F. A. gchermerhorn, for a few days. One 
day there was a "tub parade," in which fourteen carts participated, all 
lavishly decorated with autumn leaves, flowers, ribbons, and drapery of 
variovis sorts. After a parade through the principal streets, the partici- 
pants and their friends were entertained by Miss Furniss at her beautiful 
house on Yokun avenue. A ladies' fair was held for a charitable object; 
and the Lenox Club had its aiuiual reception and ball; and its races were 
held on Lee Pleasure Park. One million dollars' worth of diamonds is 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 49 

said to have been displayed at an evening reception. One lady is re- 
ported to have received sixty calls in one day. The great social event of 
one week was that given in honor of a tennis tournament at Sedgwick 
Hall. Everybody was there, the costumes of the ladies were beautiful, 
flowers, palms and ferns decked the rooms, and art army of waiters from 
New York attended to the guests. There was unremitting gayety, and 
a constant round of elegant balls, tea parties, dinners, lawn parties, 
and so on, sometimes several at the same time, during the season of 
1885, and future seasons will no doubt be even more noteworthy. 

The Clubs. 

The clubs of Lenox are natural to its social life. The Lenox Club, for 
gentlemen, was organized about 1865 by Ogden Goelet, William EUery 
Sedgwick, Richard Goodman, Sr., George B. Warren, and the late Ed- 
ward M. Rogers. About 18T4 the club was incorporated and buildings 
were erected, at a cost of $10,000, containing a billiard room, bowling 
alley, and other club belongings. In 1885, at an expense of $10,000, sev-' 
eral rooms were added, and a fine tennis court. There is a reading room, 
and a library has been started. So many members live in the town in 
the winter that the club-house was heated and kept open in the winter 
of 1886, and will be open in the winter hereafter. The club had 97 
stockholders and 115 members in the spring of 1886. Ladies are ad- 
mitted to the premises on such public occasions as musicales and tennis 
contests. In 1885 they were given the use of the tennis court every 
Saturday. 

In Sedgwick Hall the Ladies' Club, organized a few years ago, has its 
quarters, with twenty to thirty members. Here they have a reading 
room, and some periodical and book publications. It is a place where 
they read, lounge, exchange ideas, play the piano-forte, and have musi- 
cales, to which gentlemen are admitted. 

Sedgwick Hall was the old court house, and was bought for $6,000 in 
1871 by Mrs. Adaline E. Schermerhorn and given to trustees for the use 
of the town. She established the Charles Sedgwick Library and Read- 
ing Room, which the trustees maintain. The Library has towards 6,000 
volumes. The Hall has been used for dancing. The children of Mrs. 
Schermerhorn have repaired the building at a cost of $10,000. 

The appearance of Lenox village is that of the most exacting neatness 
and beauty. Not a blemish offends the eye. Tasteful homes, smooth 
lawns, rtowers, graceful trees, the coming and going of handsome equip- 
ages and many harmonizing accessories please the sight constantly. The 
4 



50 



THE nOOK OF BEKKSHIRE. 




OLD COUliT HOUSE— NOW SEDGWICK HALL. 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 51 

residents are so careful of the perfect appearance of all things that there 
is little work for a village improvement society to do. But, neverthe- 
less, there is a Ladies' Village Improvement Society that has planted 
many hundreds of trees, kept the sidewalks in order, and looked after 
the neatness of the village. Most of the village houses are connected 
with Col. George E. Waring's sewage system. In four recent years 
the town spent $45,000 for various public improvements. 

A substantial drinking fountain, made of Italian and Tennessee mar- 
bles, was placed in the "triangle " on Main street in 1885. It was a gift 
to the town in memory of Miss Emma Stebbins, the sculptor, from her 
friends, at a cost of $1,500. 

The Late Season. 

The season in Lenox used to end the first week in September, years 
ago. Now, the height of the season is in October, and many people re- 
main till November and December, while some tarry till far into January, 
or come for a visit at that time, and some even stay all winter. Main 
street is a lively scene in an October afternoon, with many people and 
carriages and vehicles of all sorts, drawn by the best bred horses. Hence 
the season is a very long one in Lenox, beginning moderately in the 
early summer, and making a round of summer, autumn, and part of 
winter. The charm of October in Lenox is incomparable outside of 
Berkshire. The brilliant foliage, the warm days with their invigorating 
climate, tlie beautiful drives, and all nature, visible, tangible and in- 
tangible, combine to make the region a paradise, in which living is a 
transcendant delight. 

The October appearance of the country made the following impression 
upon the Lenox correspondent of a Chicago paper: "There are no 
autumnal pictures in any other part of our country more beautiful than 
those of Berkshire. The pictures the Great Master has painted upon the 
woody hillsides are inimitable. The yellow leaves of the sugar maples, 
the combination of bright colors of the black maples, interwoven with 
the long, slender red leaves of the sumach, together with the purple and 
bronze of the oak, contrasted with the green of the hemlock and pine, 
all standing against a background of gray rocks, is a charming picture 
which the eye never tires of looking upon." 

As winter comes on, the factors of the country asi^ect are changed, but 
not the charm of the result. A winter scene is not the dreary thing that 
people who have never seen it here think that it is. So beautiful are 
these scenes that the most artistic engravers nowadays reproduce them 



52 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 

the best they can for magazine readers, and there is no place where they 
can find better originals than here in Berkshire. Miss Sedgwick's love 
of winter scenery manifests itself in a letter of December 1st, 1844. She 
writes "of the beauty of yesterday morning, when winter rose in her 
* robes pontifical, ne'er seen, but wondered at.' Summer is but a draw- 
ing-room scene compared to it. The sun of these days rises behind the 
highest point in our eastern horizon, and consequently his beams shoot 
down the sides of the mountains, and even into the laps of the hills, be- 
fore he is himself visible. A newly fallen snow covered the whole area 
between the hills from mountain top to mountain top, and every tree 
and shrub; not a breath of air had shaken the snow oif the lightest twig. 
It was intensely cold, and the smoke from our village homes — the breath 
of their nostrils — rose in a solid column white and bright as molten 
silver. Here a rose-colored light flushed the hills, and then the light 
dropped down into their hollows like a cloth of gold. The whole vault 
of heaven was of the brightest blue; not a cloud, not a paling hue, over 
any portion of it; and far up in the clear atmosphere, and relieved against 
this blue, stood the magnificent trees, with their winter foliage of snowy 
wreaths. Then up came the sun, and the trees that crested the summit 
all along his horizon glittered as if they were shining in another world." 
Writing of the winter climate, Mrs. Hawthorne says: " This superb win- 
ter's morning, when to live seems joy enough. * * « There have been 
no winter horrors of great cold and storm here, as we were led to expect. 
The children have lived upon the blue nectared air all winter, and papa 
said the other day that he did not believe there were two other children 
in New England who had had such uninterrupted health and freedom 
from colds. Such clear, unclouded eyes, such superb cheeks, as come in 
and out of the icy atmosphere! Such relish for dry bread, such dewey 
sleep, such joyous uprisings!" Hawthorne himself went so far as to 
write in the winter: " On the whole, I think that the best time for liv- 
ing in the country is in the winter." 

Trinity Church. 
Lenox has an unpretentious, yet substantial and well finished church 
in Trinity. It is built of dolomite, finished in 1886, at a cost of forty to 
fifty thousand dollars. At the laying of the corner-stone, the sealed box 
was placed in position by ex-President Arthur. The tower and porch 
are the gift of F. A. Schermerhorn and Mrs. A. T. Auchmuty in memory 
of their brother. The eight stained glass windows in the chancel, rep- 
resenting scenes in the life of the Savior, are the gift of Mrs. Charles 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 53 

Kueeland. The large circular stained glass window opposite the chancel 
is " The Children's Window," given by the children of the church. The 
chancel is the gift of the Misses Kneeland in memory of their brother, 
George Kueeland. The half acre that is the site of the church was 
bought for $8,000, and the whole cost, except special gifts, was paid by 
subscription. 

There is But One Opinion. 

That Lenox really is what its admirers claim for it, is proved by the 
fact that the people who come here have most of them done extensive 
traveling where the finest scenery of the world is found, and that they 
are people of taste and culture whose opinion is law. This is referred to 
for the benefit of those who have not been here. Many landscape 
painters have been here, and many paintings of Lenox scenery have 
been made. Among the artists who came early were Inman and Gray, 
both of New York. 

A correspondent of the Boston Globe from Lenox, in 188.5, wrote: " It 
is not wonderful that visitors here are enthusiastic over the beauties of 
the Berkshire Hills. The place has a charm peculiarly its own." A New 
York Tribune correspondent adds: "The region is becoining much like 
a large park." Prof. Thomas Eglestnn, of New York, has said: " Thirty 
years ago, every house in Lenox was the home of a refined and intelli- 
gent household." It is no less so to-day. President Chapin, of Beloit 
College, wrote: "Let me send a filial greeting to old Bald Head, and 
my thanks, that swell with previous memories, to the genii of the Ledge 
and its pine grove; of the Pinnacle and its rough, romantic paths; and 
to the naiads of the Mountain Mirror [Lake Averic], whose placid 
beauty must be forever enchanting." 

Miss Sedgwick writes of a fine day in 1860: " It is a divine day — a day 
when hope and faith spring forth from the glorified earth in harmony 
with the soaring birds and the opening flowers. The air this morning is 
such as might come from Paradise, when the guardian angel opens its 
gates to happy mortals. There is a worship of beauty, a sweet breath of 
praise from all this wide landscape before my door. Natvire is the 
heavenly messenger whose voice is melody and harmony." 

But, perhaps, enough has been said to give the reader a good idea of 
Lenox and its people. Nothing remains now for the stranger to do but 
to visit the town and see for himself; and, if he has an appreciative and 
discriminating eye and taste, he will discover a thousand times more 
than this tells him of. Lenox is now in the fashionable age. Its literary 



54 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 



age, SO appropriate to this remarkable region, has past, to give place to 
the luxux'ies of the wealthy and the fashions of the ceremonious. The 
people who come this way in the summer and autumn to live a long or 
short time, at home and hotel, number about 1,.500 at any one time, and, 
as people are constantly coming aad going, the total number of all is' 
much larger. The town is now owned principally by those who have 
come here to establish country homes, and the almost complete ac- 
quisition of the town's territory by these people is in the near future. 
Already large portions of Lenox and Stockbridge constitute a huge 
garden, and it cannot be many years before their whole included region 
shall be one interrupted, magnificent park, tenanted by happy owners. 




SXOCKBRIDGH. 




O ONE can undertake to describe Stockbridge 
without a deep felt realization of how in- 
adequate both tongue and pen are to express 
the sense pleasures and the feelings they 
awaktn, that fill the writer to overflowing. 
But regret gives place in time to a resigna- 
tion to the incompetence of human com- 
munication to deal with such masterpieces 
of the Creator as are scattered lavishly over 
this town. Stockbridge is one of the two or 
three places on the continent where the dis- 
tinguished men of the earth make pilgrim- 
ages to adore the acme of village and country 
beauty, and where travelers speak of the 
choicest scenes of the world in comparison; yet more of contrast than 
comparison, for it is here alone that the tone of scenery, peculiar to the 
town, is anywhere found. It is an indescribable cast of the beautiful 
and the picturesque, too fine for the common soul, too exquisite for a 
duplicate. 

The youthful, intellectual fancy of the poet Bryant was touched to the 
quick ui^on his first entry into this town. While walking from Cu'ra- 
mington to Great Barriugton, to enter a law office, on October 3d, 181.5, 
accustomed ^s he had been all his life to the charms of nature, he here 
beheld touches that he had never found before. Referring to the im- 
pression that the scene made upon him, he wrote, fifty-seven years after: 
•'The woods were in all the glory of autumn, and I well remember, as 1 
passed through Stockbridge, how much I was struck by the beauty of 
the smooth, green meadows on the border of that lovely river, which 
winds near the Sedgwick family mansion, the Ilousatonic, and whose 
gently flowing waters seemed tinged with the gold and crimson of the 
trees that overhung them. I admired no less the contrast between this 
soft scene and the steep, craggy hills that overlooked it, clothed witli 
their many colored forests. I had never before seen the southern jtart 



56 THE BOOK OF KEEKSUIKE. 



of Berkshire, and congratulated myself on being a resident of so pictur- 
esque a region." But the poet could never do justice to Stockbridge, 
except in appreciation. He, like many others, must have felt that the 
mind was capable of entertaining emotions aroused by natural scenery, 
that no power of expression could truly represent. 

The Spirit of the Surroundings. 

How thoroughly the spirit of the sun-oundiugs is absorbed by living 
among them is illustrated by an effort at their description by an old time 
resident, E. W. B. Canning, who begins with this striking incident: "An 
eminent son of Stockbridge — though for many years of his later life a 
resident elsewhere — escorted his newly married wife, who was an entire 
stranger to Bei'kshire, on her first visit to his native town. He planned 
that his arrival should occur at sunset of a bright evening in the time of 
the apple blossoming, and over the hill that rises north of the village. 
The wondrous beauty of the landscape, and the charms of its houses, 
nestled among the elms and maples of the quiet streets, left an impres- 
sion which, thirty years thereafter, found joyous utterance among the 
last words of her death bed delirium. Had she confused that unforgot- 
ten scene of her early bridal with the prospect of the heaven on whose 
shadowy borders she was lingering ? 

"Beautiful for situation, and a joy of the whole Commonwealth, is 
Old Stockbridge on the Plain. The town singularly combines, in its 
scenery, grandeur and beauty. The wooded foot-hills of the Taconic 
range bound it on the west, sloping in places gently downward to its 
triple lakes and its winding river, and again boldly breaking off in 
abrupt precipices. The Housatonic comes placidly in from the east- 
ward, and, after slowly executing numerous romantic curves through 
extensive meadows, makes a more i-apid exit into Great Barrington. 
Eattlesnake Peak— the De-ow-hook of the Indians— dominates on the 
northeast border; Nau-ti-kook answers its defiance from the west; while 
Monument, famed in story and in song, bounds the immediate view on 
the south. Southeastwardly the hills ascend rather steeply to a high 
plateau called 'Beartown,' and, in a huge fissure of a spur ridge, lies 
Ice Glen, one of the ' lions ' of the place, overlooked by the much 
frequented resort called ' Laura's Rest.' Cuch a variety of hill, plain 
and valley affords a corresponding variety of prospect; and it is a fact, 
often remarked by visitors, that rarely, if ever, elsewhere will a drive 
in any direction open so frequent a succession of views, so constant, so 
diverse, and all so beautiful." 



the book of behksiiire. 57 

The Sedgwick Family. 
As with other Berkshire towns, the cliaracter of the people who first 
resorted to Stockbridge was determined by the residents. The social 
status of the town was due, in tlie first place, principally to the Sedg- 
wick family. In 1785, Theodore Sedgwick began to ijractice law in the 
village, and to him is due the credit of the first practical anti-slavery 
agitation. Col. Ashley, of Sheffield, who supposed that he owned a negro 
woman, who had run away from him, brought suit against the man who 
harbored her. Under Mr. Sedgwick's defence, it was decided that slavery 
was impossible under the State Constitution of 1780. The woman was 
so grateful that she became a member of his household for her life; she 
took care of his children, and was buried in the family lot, where a 
monument, inscribed by Catherine M. Sedgwick, commemorates her 
humble virtues. The first slave in America, whose chains were broken 
by the law as early as over a century ago, lies buried in Stockbridge. It 
was chiefly through the exertions of her benefactor that the Massachu- 
setts law was made permanent. Among the earliest reported cases of 
the Supreme court, in Greenwood vs. Curtis, in volume VI of the Massa- 
cliusetts Ileports, Mr. Sedgwick, then a judge of the court, and an early 
member of the most distinguished line of judiciary of all the States, laid 
broad and deep the foundations of justice, in this State, by declaring 
that the law of nature should be the law of the land, and that no person 
could hold property in the person of another. Before he was judge, Mr. 
Sedgwick was a United States senator, and was a prominent man in 
launching the ship of State, under the Constitution, and such was his 
reputiition that Aaron Burr studied law with him. Burr lived in the 
J. Z. Goodrich house. 

Judge Sedgwick and his children, Charles and Cathei'ine, were instru- 
mental in attracting the first visitors to Stockbridge, who were at the 
same time their own visitors. The daughter has described how this 
began: "My father's public station and frequent residences in town 
gave him a very extensive accjuaintance, and his affectionate temper 
warmed acquaintance into friendship. There were then no steamers, 
no railroads, and a stage route through our valley but once a week. 
Gentlemen made their journeys in their private carriages, and, as a mat- 
ter of course, put up at their friends' houses. My father's home was a 
general depot, and when I remember how often the great gate swung 
open for the entrance of traveling vehicles, the old mansion seems to me 
to have resemliled much more a hostelrie of the olden times than the 
quiet house it now is. My father's hospitality was unbounded." 



58 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 

Tlirougli the marriages, relationships, fame and friendships of the 

Sedgwick family, people of taste, refinement, intelligence and wealth 

were brought to Stockbridge from all parts of the East, — people, too, 

who could not behold the town and neighboring country, and breathe its 

enchanting air, without owning subjection to the matchless charms of 

the region. 

Early Yisitoss. 

In time, tlie stage coach thoroughfare, between Boston and Albany, ran 
through Stockbridge, and travel increased so that eight stages passed 
through each day— four each way. Daniel B. Fenn, who managed the 
Stockbridge House, from 1826 to 18:31, for his father-in-law, recollects 
many of the distinguished men who tari-ied in the town a few days on 
their way through, during those years, and a few years before and after. 
They were Daniel Webster, William L. Marcy, Martin Van Buren, Daniel 
N. Dickinson, Kobert C. Winthrop, Governor Strong, Governor Lincoln, 
Attorney General Davis, all the judges of the Supreme court, — in short, 
all the other executive and judicial officers for many years: Franklin 
Granger, of Canandaigua; Judge Buel, of Albany; Governor Van Ness, 
of Vermont; Silas Wright, John Van Buren, Harrison Gray Otis, the 
Danas and Appletons, and so many more of the distinguished men of 
the day that the names mentioned are but a few of the whole number. 
Thus it was that Stockbridge, through the Sedgwick family, became, 
in point of time, the first place of resort in Berkshire. 

Catherine M. Sedgwick. 

Catherine M. Sedgwick attracted around her Bryant, from Great Bar- 
rington, and many other congenial spirits, and in the course of time her 
own literary works came to be published. Her "New England Tale" 
appeared in 18'22, and was received with such interest and favor as to 
give its author an immediate position in the world of Amei'ican litera- 
ture. Then followed " Redwood," in 1824, which was published also in 
England, and was translated and published in France; afterwards " Hope 
Leslie; " " Clarence," in 1830; and, after 1834, " Linwoods," " Le Bossu," 
" The Poor Rich Man and the Rich Poor Man," and " The Love Token." 
Miss Sedgwick's precedence among American literary women was never 
questioned until "Uncle Tom's Cabin" was written. 

Besides a wide acquaintance, Miss Sedgwick had an interesting corre- 
spondence with many of the distinguished people of her day, in this 
country and in Europe — with Sismondi, Harriet Martineau, Di". Chan- 
ning, Mrs. Jameson, and so on. Stockbridge became known to the 



THE BOOK OF BEEKSHIRE. 59 



literary people of the day, and to many others who were the patrons 
of literature and sought the society of its producers. Such people, 
among othei'S, came to the town. The sympathy of the Sedgwicks was 
awakened for the Italians, who were exiled by the Austrian government 
about 1831, and Foresti, Albinola, Confalonieri and Castillia came here 
as their guests. About the same time, Miss Sedgwick went to live with 
her brother Charles, in Lenox, who was then clerk of the courts. The 
house in which Miss Sedgwick lived in Stockbridge is owned by H. D. 
Sedgwick, her nephew, on the south side of Main street, in the center of 
the village, and she was buried in the village cemetery. 

A Pekfect Inn. 
It was but a natural result that, after the introduction of the outside 
world to Stockbridge by the Sedgwicks, the attractions of the town 
should bring a constantly increasing number of visitors from people of a 
kind with those who had been here. Public accommodations for those 
who had no private entertainment by friends were given by the Stock- 
bridge House, which stands, to-day, under the proprietorship and man- 
agement of C. H. Plumb, one of the choice hotels of the world. The 
oldest part of the building, the west end, was erected in 1774, or there- 
abovits, and was called for many years " The Red Lion Inn." People are 
now living in Stockbridge who can remember the old sign as it stood in 
front of the hotel with its picture of a lion, done "after the old masters," 
in red paint. This part of the hotel still preserves its olden architecture 
unaltered. There was not room enough between floors and in walls for 
the huge beams; so they project into the rooms and are encased. The 
ceiling in the rooms on the first floor is of varying height, a curious 
feature that a prominent architect, who has been Mr. Plumb's guest, has 
introduced in the plans of some old style houses. The rooms have 
quaint old cornices and other inside finish, with outside doors of Dutch 
fashion, and, extending nearly across them, are long hinges instead of 
the modern butts. The fui"niture of these rooms is in keeping with 
their antique appearance, being genuinely old, and not the product of a 
modern antique furniture factory. There are old tables, bureaus, chests 
of drawers, chairs, and so on. One article of furniture is an old side- 
board with inlaid work, made by William Whitehead, one of N^ew York's 
first cabinet makers. In the halls and rooms are placed spinning wheels, 
reels, warming pans, old sleigh bells, an Indian tomahawk found at Ti- 
conderoga, deers' antlers, old clocks, and many other things that har- 
monize with the relics of the olden time. About forty years ago, an 



60 THE BOOK OF BEKKSHIKE. 



addition of thirty-six feet front was built on one side of the old house, 
and the new addition of 1884 is of about the same size, the roof of the 
former addition being carried up to make three stories and an attic. 
Nearly all the rooms in the hotel have Franklin stoves, or fire places, 
and they are cheerfully lighted and nicely finished and furnished. The 
hotel now accommodates seventy to eighty guests, besides giving table 
board to the occupants of about ten cottages outside. Mr. Plumb has 
a fine early garden for supplying fresh vegetables, — those great luxuries 
to city people. A very large cold room, one of the largest and best in the 
county, is attached to the hotel for keeping meats, fruits, and other per- 
ishable provisions. 

This hotel is not so large that the guests must depend upon servants 
for the satisfaction of all their wants. In all matters where it is not out 
of place, they have the personal attendance and service of Landlord 
Plumb and of his nephew, Arthur W. Plumb. Many of the guests of 
this house have been here for many seasons, John H. Gourlie, ex-presi- 
dent of the New York Stock Exchange, for instance, for twenty-eight 
years, including the season of 1886. The guests are upon the most 
friendly terms, and new guests, if they do not find friends among the 
old ones, as they generally do, at any rate soon find congenial company, 
or they need have none at all if they prefer.' It is said by travelers that 
they never saw, outside of England, a hotel that reminded them of the 
best kept English inns of the country towns so much as this one does. 
Be that as it may, this inn is not the subject of improvement, while per- 
haps the English inn is. 

Hotel Guests. 

The Stockbridge House has always had a high quality of guests. As 
far back as 1856, such men as Charles Buckingham, the New York mer- 
chant; Frederick A. Burrall, the New York broker; William Clark, the 
Brooklyn merchant; Essex Watts, of New York; and Mr. Joslyn, one of 
the owners of the Buckingham Hotel, in New York, came here and 
stayed for the season. The following extracts from the registers of the 
last two or three years show who resort to the hotel at the present time: 

New York: W. Hamilton Gibson, Frank Waller, Eastman Johnson, 
Charles H. Knox, C. Adolph Low, H. B. Hyde, S. T. Hyde, Dr. E. S. P. 
Fowler, George C. Wilde, John H. Reed, Louis F. Benson, General R. de 
Benarides, F. H. Mulford, Maitland Armstrong, F. H. Bangs, George E. 
Cook, G. E. Taintor, William A. Du Bois, M. B. Du Bois, General John J. 
Milhau, the Rev. W. S. Rainsford, C. de Cordova. Boston: Dr. W. L. 
Jacksnn, A. B. Claflin, Avery L. Rand, William H. Talbot. Philadelphia: 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 61 

Frederick A. Betts, Horace Fassett, C. S. Benson, Jr. H. S. Hyde and 
Dr. J. S. Hurlbnt, Springfield ; Setli Low, Edmunds Titus, General Slo- 
cnm, Henry Sanger Snow, all of Brooklyn; Prof. J. D. Dana, New Haven; 
Francis Cabot, Brookline, Mass.; C. B. TurnbuU, Baltimore; S. H. Hall, 
Newark, N. J.; W. S. Chappell, New London, Ct.; the Rev. F. C. Rains- 
ford, London. 

Establishing Country Homes. 

Visitors had not made Stockbridge a summer resort many years before 
some of them began to think of establishing country homes here. It is 
not certain who was the first one to do this, and the possibility is that two 
or three did this about the same time, about 1850. The first one seems 
to have been Daniel Stanton, of New York, a retired wealthy auctioneer, 
who bought what is now Mrs. H. D. Cone's "Council Grove," and built 
the dwelling house. About the same time, John Wyman, of Boston, 
who died years ago, bought village property and made a home. G. P. R. 
James lived on the road near Monument Mountain in 1851, and a few 
years thereabouts ; but, in his efforts to make a permanent home to his 
liking, he became so disgusted at his treatment by an Irish neighbor that 
he finally left. He was a world wide traveler, but remarked that though 
he had known many localities where individual features, constituting 
landscape pageantry, were more imposing, nowhere had he seen the 
most desirable of them all grouped in a combination so charming and 
so perfect. After I860, at short intervals, others came and established 
some of the finest country homes on the continent. John Winthrop 
came from Boston and bought his " Ice Glen Farm." The Rev. Dr. D. 
D. Field, having gone to another pastorate, after i)reaching in town from 
1819 to 1837, retired from active work, and returned to this town to pass 
the remainder of his days in one of the fairest spots on earth. Here he 
died, and was buried in the village cemetery. A little over twenty years 
ago his son, David Dudley Field, repaired the old house, and bought the 
Rev. John Sergeant place, on Prospect Hill. The old house where that 
missionary lived is still standing, the second oldest building in town, 
and is supposed to have been built in 1747. It has been occupied, sum- 
mers, by friends of Mr. Field, to whom it has been rented. Jefferson 
Davis's private secretary in the days of the Rebellion, Burton N. Harri- 
son, lived there at one time. Near by,^ Mr. Field built " Eden Hall," 
which he has lately given to his daughter. Lady Musgrave. The grounds 
were laid out under the supervision of the landscape artist, Frederick 
Law Olmstead. Sir Anthony Musgrave, who has been Governor of Brit- 
ish Columbia, New Brunswick, Natal, and Jamaica, and who is now 



62 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 

Governor of Queensland, in Australia, expects to retire to this place, it 
is said, upon leaving his present office. Mr. Field owns more real estate 
in Stockbridge than any other person; he has not lived here much of 
late years, but is often here for short periods. 

Charles E. Butler, of New York, whose wife was a granddaughter of 
Judge Sedgwick, came from New York and bought the Morgan place, 
near Glendale, where he erected a fine stone house, and gave his home 
the name of " Linwood." His law partner, Charles F. Southmayd, 
bought the Nathan Appleton place, "Oak Grove," which had been 
given to the poet Longfellow, whose wife was a daughter of Mr. Apple- 
ton, but was never occupied by him. The Kev. Dr. Henry M. Field, editor 
of the New York Evangelist, bovight the Kev. Dr. West place, on Prospect 
Hill, and put up a fine house, where he has entertained many distin- 
guished people. He has occupied his "Windermere" for twenty sea- 
sons, during which time he has done everything in the way of making 
lawns and planting shade trees, to add to its natural beauty. Adjoining, 
a beautiful home was made by the late Henry Ivison, at " Bonnie Brae," 
on land that he bought from the founder of Williams College. He was 
a friend of Dr. Field's, whom he had long known in New York. Such 
was the intimacy and friendship between these neighbors, that they 
never had a fence between their grounds, the two lawns being like one, 
and, indeed, the two family households being like one family. 

Lucius Tuckerman, of New York, bought the Missionax-y Kirkland 
place, " Ingleside," called generally the President Kirkland place, form- 
erly, from his son, the president of Harvard College. Mrs. G. E. Beck, 
of Poughkeepsie, N. Y., bought from H. W. T. Mali, of New York, his 
"Edge Hill Farm," not far from the south end of Lake Mahkeenac. 
William Ashburner, a native of the town, but for many years a resident 
of San Francisco, has a place near Ice Glen, " Maple Hill;" and on the 
opposite side of the way is the place of the late Charles Boyden, of Bos- 
ton. William E. Doane, of New York, who has a place on Main street, is 
very active in village improvement. Professor C. A. Joy, formerly of 
Columbia College, came here twenty years ago, and procured a home on 
the slope of Prospect Hill, and, a few years after, Professor Rood, of 
Columbia, made a country home as his near neighbor. 

In 1885, Joseph H. Choate, of New York, who had spent many seasons 
in town, purchased land extending from Main street up to Prospect street, 
and he is now (1886) preparing one of the loveliest homes in the county. 
The house, on the lower side of Prospect street, will cost $100,000, it is 
said, and will be a rare possession, with its many adornments, conveni- 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 63 

ences, and comforts. It will be finished in many handsome natural 
woods, and the windows will be so arranged that the view from each 
one will be like a fi-amed picture of surjiassing l)eauty. The greatest 
length of the house will be 96 feet; breadth, 40 feet, and, on the lower 
side, three stories high. It will be a wooden liouse, somewhat in the old 
English style of architecture. The outside will be shingled down to the 
basement, and will have no paint, except on trimmings. Five stacks of 
chimneys and two towers will rise above the roofs, two spacious jjiazzas 
will be made, and the whole building will be beautifully broken up with 
bays, angles, windows, and various architectural designs. 

Francis Todd, of New York, has lately bought land at the upper end 
of Prospect street, probably for a home. Mrs. Julia Van Rensselaer has 
bought a house in the same quarter, which she occupies with her sister, 
Mrs. Philip Livingston. 

Bringing to a close the mention of the owners of country homes in 
Stockbridge, a delicate matter cannot be avoided. A petty jealousy 
toward each other possesses Stockbridge and Lenox, lest one shall claim 
some of the other's "glory." There was a time when the talk of a few 
Lenox people tried to belittle the other town, and the remembrance 
thereof still rankles. Indeed, Stockbridge claims that the grievance 
has not been suppressed. On the other hand, Stockbridge "claims" 
all that it can tax. The division line between the towns runs through 
the outskirts of Lenox village, on its southwest, and here, and on the 
north also, are places in Stockbridge territory owned by people who are 
four to five miles from Stockbridge village, and who are not identified 
with its society, but who are essentially Lenox people in spirit and asso- 
ciation. What credit is due to Stockbridge for embracing the land on 
which these i^eoijle live shall here be given, but the accuracy of this 
volume demands that they shall be classed where they belong. The 
homes that are the subject of this feeling are owned by W. D. Sloane, 
Charles Lanier, W. S. Bullard, W. A. Tappan, S. G. Ward, Mrs. Charles 
Astor Bristed, Mrs. Caroline Tappan, and George Higginson, Jr. 

Permanent and Temporary Residents. 
There are a few people who may be called permanent residents among 
the people who have come here to find a home. These are W. E. Doane, 
H. J. Canfield, John Winthrop, Harry D. Sedgwick, Miss M. A. Weyman, 
Miss Grace Stanley Parker; the Rev. Arthur Lawrence, rector of St. Paul's 
Church; Mrs. Samuel Lawrence, II. D. Cone, Mrs. Charles Adams, Ed- 
ward Livermore, and Col. James F. Dwight, from whose house, next to 



64 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 



the Indian Burial Ground, the most delightful view in the village is to 
be had toward the sovithwest. His house is one of the old ones of the 
village, and is a flue survival of the old time dwelling. 

There are about a dozen houses to let in Stockbridge every year, and 
among the people who have hired them within a year or so are the fol- 
lowing: Alfred Bishop Mason, Mrs. George Buckham, Miss Minturn, 
Charles S. Clark, F. B. Arnold, Theodore W. Sterling, C. L. Hackstaff, 
the Eev. Dr. Morgan, of St. Thomas's Church, J. C. Burrage, C. de Cor- 
dova, General John J. Milhau, all of New York; H. C. Collins, of Brook- 
lyn. It is the practice with some people to hire a cottage and to get 
meals at the hotel. 

First and last, Stockbridge has been visited by many distinguished 
people, some of them as the guests of residents, others at the hotel 
or as lessees of houses. Dr. Kane, of Arctic fame, came when the Grin- 
nells lived here. In 1841 Lord Morpeth, later the Earl of Ripon, wanted 
to acquaint himself with the life and homes of American yeomanry 
while visiting here, and was taken to the house of Paul S. Palmer, in 
this town, where he ate dinner with a man who had been in the Kevolu- 
tion, and was introduced to a specimen of the best and most intelligent 
of Berkshire farmers, than whom there are no better representatives of 
American yeomanry. Harriet Beecher Stowe lived here several seasons, 
some of the time in the Timothy Woodbridge place, now owned by Lady 
Musgrave, one of the old houses of the village. The family of President 
Garfield was at the Stockbridge House in 1885. Frances Hodgson Bur- 
nett has been here ; and General Armstrong, the Indian educator, often 
visits at D. E. Williams's. William M. Evarts and Judge David Davis 
have been here several times, and so lias Longfellow. There has hardly 
been a governor of the State who has not visited the town — Andrew, 
Washburn, Bullock, and nearly the whole long line of executives. No 
one in town has entertained as many distinguished peojile here as the 
Rev. Henry M. Field. Among his earliest visitors was the Rev. Dr. 
McCosh, president of Princeton College, then on his first visit to 
America, who was so captivated by the prospect, as he stood on the 
piazza of Dr. Field's house and looked off upon the mountains, that he 
exclaimed: " There is not a finer view in all Scotland!"' — which was a 
good deal for a Scotchman to say. In support of this he quoted Walter 
Scott, who was wont to say that the finest scenery in Scotland was not 
in the Highlands nor in the Lowlands, but midway, where the bald; 
bleak mountains lowered their rugged fronts, as if stooping to the vales 
between, so that the whole effect was one of grandeur, mingled with the 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 65 

exquisite beauty that it softened. This description, Dr. McCosh said, 
applied perfectly to the scene here before his eye. Dean Stanley, who 
was David Dudley Field's guest here in 1S77, said that the view from this 
hill was the most beautiful that he had seen in America. Two years ago 
Sir William Thompson, among the first scientific men of Great Britain, 
spent several days with Dr. Field at " Windermere," and was equally en- 
thusiastic over the view, combining the charms of hill and valley, mount- 
ains and rivers. As might be supposed, a home with such attractions 
and with inward charms, presided over by one of the best hosts in the 
land, has no lack of visitors from the city and from abroad. If we could 
trespass further on this private home, a long list of distinguished guests 
could be named. Dr. Field has been a great traveler, having been in all 
parts of the world, and he often has the pleasure of welcoming under his 
roof missionaries and others whose guest he has been in India, China, 

and Japan. 

Memories of the Indians. 

Stockbridge has unusual memories of the aborigines. An early mis- 
sion of the settlei's was the Housatonic mission among the Stockbridge 
Indians. The matter was agitated as early as 1734, and the work was 
inaugurated by the Rev. John Sergeant, in October of that year, on the 
present location of Great Barrington village, where a school was'opened. 
The Eev. Timothy Woodbridge, whose grandson wrote " The Autobiog- 
rajjhy of a Blind Minister," came to the mission soon after. For the 
pui'pose of giving the missionaries a better support, the town of Stock- 
bridge was set apart, and some of it given to them. In May, 1736, the 
mission moved to Stockbridge, comprising some fifty souls, of whom 
forty were pupils in the school. Its fame went abroad, and such were 
the accessions from Connecticut and New York that, upon the general 
migration of the Indians westward, their number was about 400. In- 
deed, it seems to have been the most famous Indian mission of its day in 
the Colonies, and from it several missionary undertakings branched. 
Mr. Sergeant died in 1749, and was buried in the village cemetery. The 
epitaph on his tombstone is said to have been composed by an Indian. 
The conduct of affairs was taken in succession by Jonathan Edwards, 
1751-8; the Eev. Dr. Stephen West, 1759-75; John Kirkland, and, lastly, 
John Sergeant, son of the missionary. But civilization crowded upon 
the Indians, and, in 1786-<S, the Stockbridge Indians went to live near the 
Oneidas, in Central New York. Since that time, with four other re- 
movals, these Indians, about 250 in number, now live in Shawnee county, 
Wisconsin, where their existence is gradually fading. 
5 



66 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIKE. 




Old Indian Burial Ground. 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. Dl 

The services of the Stockbridge Indians to the Revolutionists were so 
valuable that Washington, on the declaration of peace, ordered that an 
ox for a barbecue, with whisky rations, be given to them to celebrate the 
event after their own customs. The ceremonies were performed on theii' 
covincil ground, at the slope of Laurel Hill, where, after an abundance 
of good cheer, they shot, scalped and burned an effigy of Arnold, and 
buried their war hatchet. 

About .$400 were raised in 1877, by the exertion of Mrs. J. Z. Goodrich, 
for a memorial for their Indians. Their burial place, before the estab- 
lishment of the mission, was in the rear of the home of Col. James F. 
Dwight, on a bluff overlooking the meadow. A natural shaft, about 
lif teen feet long and two feet square, was got near Ice Glen and set west , 
of Col. Dwight's home, on a base five feet high, concealed by a cairn of 
small bowlders and covered with vines. A large flat slab was built into 
the front of the cairn, and inscribed: " The Burial Place of the Housa- 
tonic Indians, the Friends of our Fathers — 1734-1877." It has been 
greatly admired for its simplicity and appropriateness. 

Jonathan Edavakds. 

-The name of the Rev. Jonathan Edwards is inseparable from Stock- 
bridge. He was installed here August 8, 1751, and iirst occupied 
"Edwards Hall," now the oldest building in town and a place where 
summer guests find entertainment. It was built for the Rev. John 
Sergeant in 1737, and the front portion, minus the veranda and dormer 
windows, is the same now as then. Mr. Edwards erected an addition. 
In a closet in the house, six by fifteen feet, he wrote that great work, 
"The Freedom of the Will," which was followed by "God's End in 
Creation " and " The Nature of Virtue." Here he reviewed and pre- 
faced his treatise on "Original Sin," "The Harmony of the Old and 
New Testaments," and prepared for the press his sermons on " The 
History of Redemption." Several characteristic stories of him are told, 
which may be got in the literature of the town. He left Stockbridge, 
January 4, 1758, to become president of Pi-inceton College, where he 
died on the 22d of the next March of small-pox, at the age of .54. 

The table on which President Edwards wrote is still here, in the hands 
of Prof. Hoffman. The outside of the house is still made of the original 
clapboards put on 149 years ago; they were not sawed, but were split 
from pine logs with axes, and were fastened with hand-made nails. The 
same ponderous doors that kept Indians out now let summer boarders in, 
three little glass windows at the top (it was in Queen Anne's time), a 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 



paneling outside, a heavy batten of plank inside, four wrought-iron 
hinges, each three feet long, an elaborate and ingenious latch, opened 
by a knob and closed by a spring, a brass knocker, and a great staple on 
each side within and a hickory bar six feet long standing in the corner 
and fitting the staples, with which the doors have always been fastened 
every night. 

About 200 descendants of President Edwards gathered here, Septem- 
ber G and 7, 1870, in commemoration of their great ancestor. They were 
hospitably entertained by the village people, and all united in public 
meetings, music, speeches, and festivity, which closed with a dinner, 
tendered by the citizens on the old Indian Square. The outcome of the 
gathering was the erection by the descendants of a monument to their 
gi-eat ancestor, of Scotch granite, costing $3,000. It stands within a few 
rods of the site of the old Indian meeting house toward the west end of 
Main street. 

Public Benefactions. 

Stockbridge is fortunate in being a place of monuments, drinking 
fountains and public benefactions of various sorts. The second soldiers' 
monument erected in Western Massachusetts was placed here and dedi- 
cated October 17, 1866, with orations by Governor Bullock and Harry D. 
Sedgwick. 

J. H. Gourlie and G. Albinola have given fountains to the town, one of 
them being in the small park near the hotel. 

By the efforts of George Lawrence, in ISSl, $600 were contributed to 
the erection of a unique stone drinking fountain, with appropriate in- 
scriptions, on the Library corner. 

The literary taste, in whioh the town has never been lacking, found 
expression, in 1790, in the establishment of a public library, which con- 
tinued until 1822, and in many other ways the inhabitants obtained much 
reading matter during that time and subsequently. In 1862 Nathan Jack- 
son, of New York, born in Tyringham and educated here, gave $2,000 
for a public library, provided that others would add $1,000 and erect a 
suitable building. The cash contributions nearly doubled the $1,000, a 
corner lot was given by Mrs. Frances F. Dwight, J. Z. Goodrich erected 
a fine stone building at a cost of $.'3,000, and 400 volumes were contributed. 
The Jackson Library Association has a permanent fund, and the town 
and many residents contribute generously every yeai'. The Libraiy has 
about 7,000 vo'.umes, and over 8,000 volumes are drawn yearly. 

A fund of $3,000 was bequeathed in 1842 by Cyrus Williams for the 
education of indigent lads at Williams Academy, in the village. 



THE BOOK OF BEEKSHIKE. 



Cyrus W. Field, in 1879, added to tlie grounds on which formerly stood 
the Con(;regational church, ten or twelve acres adjoining, and laid out 
the whole for a public park, all at an expense of towards $15,000. 

John Z. Goodrich gave Williams College towards $75,000, $50,000 being 
in cash. He gave the hall above the Library for the use of the Congre- 
gational Society. Miss A. D. Woodbridge left a legacy of $3,000 to the 
Laurel Hill Association. Mrs. H. D. Cone has made many public gifts 
and maintains in the village of Housatonic a free public library and 
reading room, for the special use of Mr. Cone's paper mill operatives. 

On the site of the old Indian meeting house, David Dudley Field, in 
1878, erected a Mission Tower of stone, in handsome design, and placed 
in it a clock and chime of nine bells, called the Childreix's Chimes, which 
are rung at his own expense during a portion of the year. The bells 
weigh 8,000 pounds, the largest one 2,000, and the nine cost $4,200. The 
Tower is seventy feet high. It commemorates the Indian mission, and 
the chimes are in memory of Mr. Field's grandchildren. 

Mr. Field also built a road over Monument Mountain, by the way of 
the Smith farm, a few years ago, but it is now somewhat overgrown with 
bvishes and trees. 

The Laurel, Hill Association and Village Perfection. 
As lovely as Nature has been formed in Stockbridge, Art has con- 
tributed finishing touches to the village aspect, so that the artificial 
environment is absolutely matchless in unsullied beauty. This is due 
to the native taste of the inhabitants, who do what they can privately to 
enhance the charm of the village surroundings, and, for further work, 
have established a society for organized public improvement. The 
parent village improvement society of the nation was the Laurel Hill 
Association. In this village, . in 1853, Mrs. J. Z. Goodrich, then Miss 
Hopkins, was instrumental, through agitation, in securing the organi- 
zation of this society. The meetings have always been held on Laurel 
Hill, the ancient council ground of the Indians, which was made a play 
ground for school children by the Sedgwicks in 1834, and was deeded by 
them to the association in 186(3. The scattered sons and daughters of 
the town, in all sections of the county, volunteered their aid, and, with 
$1,400 in cash and a large amount of promised labor, the association was 
launched on its aesthetic career. In its thirty-three years of existence, 
it has expended about $8,000, planted 2,000 trees, exclusive of hedges; 
and its watchful care for village appearance may be seen in the side- 
walks, street crossings, foot bridges, village paths, drives and shades in 



70 THE BOOK OF BEKKSHIRE. 

the cemetery, in the shaven lawns, in the absence of street fences, in the 
constant cleaninj:^ and ji^raveling, and, more plainly still, in the improved 
taste and culture of the people in all that tends to rational pleasure and 
refinement. 

At the annual meeting there are an oration from a rustic rostrum, 
speeches, and music. In 1881, Prof. H. B. Adams, of Johns Hopkins 
University, traced the Germanic origin of New England towns; and, in 
the following year, he gave an account of the origin of Stockbridge and 
village improvements in Berkshire. The laws of village impi'ovement, 
he says, beginning with restraining the wanderings of swine and cattle, 
have developed to this product of a refined community and of an edu- 
cated common sense, and not only effectually prevent trespass upon open 
lawns and in attractive gardens, but even forbid the accumulation of 
rubbish about the village premises and along the highways and hedges; 
nay, these laws have even restrained the last vestige of swinish litter 
once caused by thoughtless persons scattering, as they came from the 
post ofiice, torn envelopes and newspaper wrappers upon cleanly walks 
and drives. 

The Unspotted Neatness of the Village. 
The fame of this association has gone so far that the demand for its 
printed constitution comes from every part of the American Union. 
The village neatness is the wonder of every stranger. W. A. Croffut, 
writing to the Boston Herald in July, 1882, says : " Stockbridge is unique 
— the neatest, most orderly, and best kept town that I have ever seen in 
this country. The main street is 120 to 150 feet wide, and all the streets 
outside the wagon way are kept closely mown and swept clean of every 
twig and every dead leaf. Hedges, constantly trimmed, often supersede 
fences — hedges of privet, osage, orange, hawthorn, blackthorn, arbor 
vitse, hemlock, cedar, and all sorts of thrifty evergreen. Everywhere 
one sees the hedge trimmer and the lawn mowers busy, and, as my eye 
strays out of the window, it rests on a man with a broom, with which 
he is carefully picking up every stray leaf. The first day I came here, I 
flung away a crumpled visiting card from the front porch. Then it 
looked so conspicuous on the lawn that I went and picked it up and 
flung it into the street. That, it was instantly apparent, was worse yet. 
It lay on the close cropped emerald stubble, and looked as if it could be 
seen for ten miles. I picked it up and carried it to the waste basket; 
there was no other way. Almost every house in town has a handsome 
lawn around it and flowers before it — flowers in beds of every shape. 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 71 

flowers over the doors in red boxes, flowers in pretty window ledges, 
flowers growing in crotches of the abundant trees, and the whole village 
has an ample shade. There is hardly a house or barn that needs a coat 
of paint; hardly a hedge with frowsy hair. Everything is in order, indi- 
cating not only wealth, but, what is much rarer, good taste and a love of 
beauty." 

The aesthetic influence infects every visible village component. In 
1814, the Town Oflices were built at a cost of §10,000, a fine building 
with handsome rooms, surpassing anything that can be found elsewhere. 
The interior of the Housatonic Bank building is the most elegant one in 
New England outside of Boston ; and one of the stores has no parallel 
in any other country place in the land in its appearance and appoint- 
ments. 

St. Paul's Church. 

Stockbridge is fortunate in having a perfect gem of a church, St. Paul's, 
which was i^ictured and somewhat described in the Ccntiinj soon after it 
was built, in 1884. It was given to the society by Charles E. Butler in 
memory of his wife, Susan Ridley Sedgwick Butler. The interior is 
open to visitors diiring the day time every week day, except Saturday, 
for prayer or inspection. The building and its belongings are choice 
works of art, the total cost being, it is said, about §100,000, exclusive of 
land. .The stained glass pictorial window in the rear of the chancel is a 
memorial of the Rev. Dr. Samuel P. Parker, who was rector of the church 
for about fifteen years. The artist was La Farge. The window was 
given by friends of Dr. Parker. The massive chancel furniture of antique 
quartered oak, communion table and two chairs, was given by Mrs. 
Franklin II. Delano, of New York. The antique brass lecturn was given 
by Charles S. Weyman. The pulpit, sym1»olically carved, was the gift of 
the Eev. Henry F. Allen, of Boston, rector of the church, 1865-72, in 
memory of his mother. On the wall in frojit of the organ is a repro- 
duction of the famous " Singing Boys and Girls " of Lucca Delia Robbia, 
the Florentine sculptor of 1400-80. The original, ten panels sculj^tured 
in all degrees of relief, finished in 1445, was the marble frieze that was 
in front of the organ in the cathedral at Florence, but is now set up in 
the Uffizi Palace, in that city. A few copies have been made from a cast 
of the original taken by a Berlin art society. This work of art is given 
by Misses Emily and Laura Tuckerman. The baptistery is a precious 
work of art in fossiliferous marble from France and in brecciated marble. 
The memorial tablet was designed by St. Gaudiens, and the stained glass 
windows came fi'om Tiffany's. The Roosevelt organ is a very effective 



72 



THE BOOK OF BERKSUIRE. 




Chime of Bells Tower. 



THE BOOK OF EEEKSHIBE. 



73 



one for its size, witli a carved case of quartered oak and with forty-seven 
front pipes peculiarly decorated. There are several memorial windows 
of stained f^lass, carved hammerbeams, and other choice belongings, all 
of which, with what has been mentioned, make this church one of the 
notable ones of the country. With singular propriety this work of art 
and beauty, and harmony and religion, is placed in Stockbridge and in 
Berkshire where nature is in harmony with art and beauty, and where 
religion should reach its purest and most exalted form. The church 
that this displaced was a wooden building, whose architect was the 
famous Richai'd Upjohn; the bell, now in the new church, was given by 
David Dudley Field ; and the clock, also put into the new church, was 
largely the gift of G. P. E. James. In the old church had officiated 
many distinguished divines, and it had many noted attendants, among 
them Charles Sumner. Here Dean Stanley delivered a discourse, his 
only one in America. 

TuE Home of Distinguished People. 
Besides the large number of distinguished persons that have made 
Stockbi'idge their home, both native and adop)ted, already mentioned, 
there are many more, a few of whom ought to be mentioned, because of 
tlie pleasant association. " Cherry Cottage " was the birth place of the 
Picv. Dr. Mark Hopkins. The Rev. J. T. Headley preached in Curtisville 
from 1840 to 1842. The Rev. Dr. Kirkland, who was president of Harvard 
College, first became an educator in this town. The Rev. Dr. Stephen 
West, pastor of the Congregational church from 1759 to 1818, was a noted 
polemical preacher, who wrote "An Essay on Moral Agency," a treatise 
on ''The Atonement," and many sermons and essays. The Rev. Samuel 
Wheljiley, author of " The Triangle " and a " Compend of Ancient and 
Modern History," was born and reared here. Among citizens of the 
town have been Prof. Albert Hopkins, of Williams College; Prof. J. W. 
Hart, of Philadelphia; Miss Abby D. Woodbridgc, of Albany and Brook- 
lyn ; the Rev. Henry Fowler, of New York and Chicago ; Judge Ezekiel 
Bacon, of Utica, N. Y. ; Judge Pierrepont Edwards; President Edwards, 
of Union College; Theodore Dwight, Henry W. Dwight, Henry and Rob- 
ert Sedgwick, of New York; the poet William Pitt Palmer, who was born 
here. Timothy Woodbridge, Jahleel Woodbridge and John Bacon were 
judges of the Supreme Court, tbe former chief justice; Ei^hraim Williams 
was judge of the Court of Common Pleas; Horatio Byington was judge 
of the Superior Court. Nine judges, counting promotions, have been 
appo nted from this town, and seven congressmen, among them Theo- 



74 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 

dore Sedgwick, who was speaker. Judge Sedgwick was also United 
States Senator. John Z. Goodricli was congressman and lieutenant gov- 
ernor, and was one of the originators of the Republican party in I806, 
being chairman of the National Committee which organized the party. 
Horace J. Canlield was president of the State Senate. Jonathan E. 
Field, whose distinguished brothers' names are so intimately associated 
with the history of the town, was president of the State Senate, and, 
when in that office, received the visit here of the whole Senate, and was 
a member of the commission to revise the Statutes. Stephen D. Field, 
his son, is an electrician and an inventor of a system of quadruplex tele- 
graphy and an electric motor. Enoch, son of Timothy Woodbridge, was 
chief justice of the Vermont Supreme Court. Several devoted mis- 
sionaries have gone from the town — the Eev. Cyrus Byington to the 
Choctaws, the Rev. Josiah Brewer to Turkey and Greece, Mrs. Catharine 
Watson to Burmah, Mrs. Catherine Sergeant De Forest to Beirut, Mrs. 
Sarah Perry Powers to Persia, Mrs. Mary Perry Ford to Aleppo, Miss 
Susan J. Johnson to the Choctaws. The subject of this paiagraph 
could be continued much farther. , 

Village Attractions. 

A Club House will be built, perhaps this year, on a lot about 150 feet 
square near Edwards Hall. The lot has been bought with the contribu- 
tions of David Dudley Field, William E. Doane, John Winthrop, Lucius 
Tuckerman, C. E. Butler, and Charles F. Southmayd. The Club build- 
ing and grounds will be a lounging, chatting, reading, and smoking 
place, and will have conveniences for innocent games, chief of which 
will be a tennis court. This is the chief outdoor game, and the village 
tennis club has contests with the Lenox club. 

The oldest shade trees in the village are the four elms standing before 
the premises of Mrs. Owen, on Main street, which were set by Col. W. 
M. Edwards, grandson of President Edwards, in 1780. The oldest maples 
are the remains of a row on the south side of Main street, which were 
planted by residents on Fast Day, 1814. Some trees were set in 1840, but 
a large part of the shades of the village and all those on the outleading 
roads were set by the Laurel Hill Association since 1853. The money 
has been promised, and will be some day forthcoming, for setting out 
a row of trees on each side of every highway within the town. 

People who do not want to hire a house nor live at the hotel can obtain 
excellent keeping in and near the village in private families, eight or ten 
of which each offer accommodations to a few people. 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIKE. 75 

There are about fifty miles of public roads in this town, all in a most 
perfect state of repair. Riding over them is as easy as over a railroad; 
they are well graveled, hard, smooth, and even, and the town takes a 
great deal of pride in them, as it ought. Over these roads the rides are 
enchanting, and on fair days most of the people are out with handsome 
turnouts and fine horses. 

Ice Glen. 

Walks about town are in numerous directions. A favorite one is to 
Ice Glen, a cleft across the spur of Bear Mountain, a short distance from 
the village. Here, in a deep, cool, shady, wild ravine of irregular forma- 
tion, is a luxurious retreat in a hot day, where ice may be found all 
summer down among the fallen rocks. The ravine is forty rods long, 
and is thickly strewn with enormous boulders and the great trunks of 
fallen trees, all mossy and slijipery and in wild confusion, so as to leave 
cavernous recesses and an often impeded passage for a lively brook. To 
clamber up this ravine in the dank air and gloomy shade is a most 
romantic undertaking, and a weird aspect is imparted to the scene by a 
torchlight visit in the night. 

Lauka's Rest. 
Beyond Ice Glen, and about two miles from the village, a magnificent 
mountain outlook is had from Laura's Rest, where David Dudley Field 
had built an observatory fifty feet high, wrecked in a heavy wind last 
winter. Here the range of vision extends wide into Connecticut, New 
York, and to Vermont, on nearly every side of the observer, and the 
beauties that are spread before him are transcendent. 

Wheije to Walk. 

Fine sidewalks extend from the center of the village from one-half to 
three-qi;arters of a mile in every direction, and these, well shaded, make 
delightful strolls. Prospect Hill, just above the village, commands one 
of the choicest views of beauty in the world, — so say the Rev. T. T. 
Munger and every one else who has traveled enough to sustain so bold a 
comparison. 

Of the view from Prospect Hill, Henry Ward Beecher, in one of his 
Star Papers, says Stockbridge is "famed for its meadow elms, for the 
picturesque scenery adjacent, for the quiet beauty of a village which 
sleeps along a level plain, just under the rim of hills. If you wish to be 
filled and satisfied with the serenest delight, ride to the summit of this 
encircling hill ridge, in a summer's afternoon, while the sun is but an 



76 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIKE. 




Stockbridge Bowl. 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 77 

hour hitfh. The Housatonic winds in great circuits all through the val- 
ley, carrying willows and alders with it wherever it goes. The horizuu 
on every side is piled and terraced with mountains. Abrupt and isolated 
mountains bolt up here and there over the whole stretch of the plain,, 
covered with evergreens." 

The Rev. Henry M. Field has paid many a tribute to the beloved town. 
In a letter, he says: '• The peculiar beauty of Stockbridge is that it is a 
valley set in an amphitheatre of mountains, which close round it like the 
walls of some mighty castle, as if to guard it from intrusion from the 
outer world. The point of view from which one takes in all its features 
best is the brow of the hill, on the northern side, where at the same mo- 
ment we look down on the valley below, and round the whole horizon. 
There is one point, on the shoulder of the hill, which has an outlook up 
and down for miles, and, because of this, was chosen by the early settlers 
as the position for a watch-tower against the Indians. After those dan- 
gers were passed, this si^ot was always a favorite resort for the view. 
It is a tradition of the town that old Judge Sedgwick, the ancestor of the 
famous Sedgwick family, as he rode over the hill, always reined in his 
horse at this point to take in the enchanting prospect." 

Laurel Hill, on the edge of the village, is the object of another walk, a. 
delightful i^lace that is a frequent resort. A walk to " Cherry Cottage," 
toward Monument Mountain, is often taken by those who want to go 
three miles. A four-mile walk is from Palmer's to East street, and a 
most wild, romantic walk of six miles may be had over the old Burgoyne 
road, which begins close by the artesian well, three-quarters of a mile 
beyond Ice Glen, and extends up the mountain. It is not a public road, 
but connects with the Beartown road, going down to South Lee, which 
is the way of return. But the stranger in Stockbridge needs no direc- 
tions beyond these to find the beautiful. It is everywhere ! 

Where to Drive. 

The town has three noted lakes — Mahkeenac (Stockbridge Bowl), at 
the north, covering 500 acres, gracing a scene of surpassing loveliness ; 
Averic, half a mile southwest of it, covering fifty to sixty acres; aud 
Mohawk, a mile northwest of Glendale, comprising about twenty-two 
acres. There are ample facilities for boating on these charming lakes. 

Drives outside the town are made to Lenox, West Stockbridge, Bicb- 
mond. Great Barrington, Bashbish Falls, The Dome of the Taconics, 
Lake Buel, " Highlawn Farm," and other places mentioned in the table 
of distances and drives. 



78 the book of bbekshiee. 

Miss Sedgwick's Description of a View. 
A view of Stockbridge is charmingly depicted in Catherine M. Sedg- 
wick's " Hope Leslie:" "A scene of valley and hill, river and meadow, 
surrounded by mountain, whose encircling embrace expressed protection 
and love to the gentle spirit of the valley. A light summer shower had 
just fallen, and the clouds in a thousand liveries bright had risen from 
the western horizon and hung their rich draperies about the sun. The 
horizontal rays passed over the valley and flushed the upper branches of 
the trees, the summits of hills and the mountains with a flood of light, 
while the low grounds, reposing in deep shadow, presented one of those 
striking and accidental contrasts in nature that a painter would have 
selected to give effect to his art. The gentle Housatonic wound through 
the depths of the valley, in some parts contracted to a nai'row channel 
and murmuring over the rocks that rippled its surface; and in others 
spreading wide its clear mirror and lingering like a lover amid the vines, 
trees and flowers that fringed the banks." 

The Huge Old Willow. 
About a mile south, on the road to Great Barrington, is the huge 
stump of a willow tree, whose branches, weakened by age, were blown 
down by wind a few years ago. It was said by all who saw it to be the 
largest willow they ever saw. The trunk measures 32 feet around, and 
the branches were 115 feet from tip to tip. This tree grew from a riding 
whip that a Mr. Goodrich stuck in the ground in 1794, when he passed 
that way on horseback on his way from Weathersfield, Ct. A finely 
wi'itten meditation, from the pen of the Rev. Dr. Henry M. Field, on the 
fall of this tree, was published in his New York Evangelist, in July, 1884, 
and we give it in pictrure, in connection with the initial letter of this 
chapter on Stockbridge, as it appeared a few years before its destruction. 

Stockbridge Must Be Seen and Lived in. 
The opinion of many visitors to Stockbridge might be quoted from 
their writings as to its attractions, for never a year passes without more 
or less of such publications ; but the reader of this volume ought not to 
need the quotations. Yet, at best, words cannot do Stockbridge justice; 
they cannot describe its omnipresent charms, the exquisite quality of its 
beauty, the unspotted neatness of the village, nor the refined quiet of the 
place. The associations that group here are all matters that interest 
the exile from cities. The memories of Judge Sedgwick, who was one of 
the remarkable men of his time, and who should be remembered, as well 



THE IJOOK OF BERKSHIKE. 



79 



as for other matters, as the first man who was instrumental in making 
slavery illegal ; of Catherine M. Sedgwick, who was the first American 
literary woman of her day ; of the great metaphysician, Jonathan Ed- 
wards ; of one of the first protestant missions among the Indians ; — all 
these and many more memories, and the absolute perfection attained in 
village life and aspect, together with the choice society of the town, 
make it of the highest interest to visitors. As with other parts of Berk- 
shire, Stockbridge is still growing as a summer resort for the tourist and 
for those who stay a few days or weeks, and, at the same time, it is becom- 
ing the summer and autumn home of an increasing number of people. 
Most charming locations for new liomes are still plentiful, and in the 
spreading tendency to come this way for a season's sojourn, it is i>robable 
that not many years will i)ass before the best of the remaining ones will 
be converted into many more precious Country Homes in Berkshire. 




4I 
m 



80 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 




GREAT BARRII^GTOX. 




^NE of the pioneer attractions in the Berk- 
shire movement was Great Barringtou. 
Here the singular beautj'- of the region 
first found appreciation, and a few dev- 
ottes early made pilgrimages to the Cre- 
ator's choicest shrine of Nature. As the 
late Rev. Dr. Samuel P. Parker remarked 
many years ago, nature has been most 
prolific with this town. While sharing in 
the marvelous beauty of the other towns, 
this one has appropriated the boldest and 
most daring touches, which, outside of 
Berkshire, instead of heightening the 
charm, would have ruined it. The fac- 
tors of the landscape have been thrown into the most striking com- 
binations, all in exquisite harmony, imposing in effect, multiplied into 
astonishing variety, and admirable to the last extreme of good critical 

taste. 

The First Visitoks. 

Among the first in the county, this town was sought by refugees from 
the summer of the city and by country home seekers. Before a railroad 
came from Bridgeport on the windings of the Housatonic river, in 1842, 
these people were necessarily few; but after that their numbers soon 
and steadily increased. William Cullen Bryant frequently, after 182.5, 
made summer visits; Elias W. Leavenworth, now of Syracuse, N. Y., 
who passed his youthful years here, often returned, and, in renewing 
fond remembrances, invariably first hurried to command the magnificent 
prospect from Berkshire Heights. William Sherwood came often from 
New York to visit his nieces, the Misses Kellogg, who kept a famous 
school for young ladies. This was attended by his daughter, Mary F. 
Sherwood, who here became acquainted with her future husband, Mark 
Hopkins, subsequently of Central Pacific Railroad fame. .John F. Bacon, 
6 



82 THE BOOK OF BEKKSHIKE. 

of Albany, came to visit relatives ; and a guest of the Misses Kellogg was 
William Gilmore Simms, of South Carolina. 

The coming of other visitors than former residents and friends and 
relatives of the town's people was conditioned upon good hotel accom- 
modations, which were not provided till the Berkshire House was built 
by George R. Ives, in 1840. Then, with the railway communication with 
the outside world, which was established in 1842, came people who at 
once made Great Barringtou an established summer resort. From 1842 
to 1850, among the visitors who are remembered were Henry Bush, con- 
sul to China, who had a Chinese servant, a great curiosity in those days ; 
Dr. Barstow and family, of Salem, Mass. ; Dr. Prescott, who was a surgeon 
in the Kevolution; Mr. and Mrs. Bamman, who remained during the win- 
ter, and were the first to make so long a residence ; and Dr. Ticknor, who 
had been an army officer. W. B. Dinsmore, now president of the Adams 
Express Company, stayed at the Berkshire House in the summer of 1846, 
or thereabouts. Park Benjamin, who was a frequent visitor, read an 
original poem at a Fourth of July celebration in 1847, in the oak grove 
where E. D. Brainerd's house now stands, on the road to Berkshire 
Heights, and C. Edwards Lester, who was often here in those days, and 
■whose "Glory and Shame of England" had given him notoi'iety at the 
time, delivered the address. Dr. Parker, when he preached at Lenox or 
Stockbridge, years ago, told a village inhabitant here that some years 
previously he stepped into the Pearl street store of a New York friend, 
who told him that he had sold his New Jersey property. "Why so?" 
asked Dr. Parker. " I'm going to the finest town on the American con- 
tinent," was the enthusiastic reply; " and that town is Great Barrington, 
Berkshire County, Mass." The unfortunate mei-chant died before he 
covild move to the earthly paradise. 

The first country home seeker in this town was David Leavitt, the 
wealthy New York merchant, who, in 1852, bought the property that he 
called "Brookside," now owned by his grandson, Harry Y. Leavitt, and 
located on the east side of the Hoiisatonic River, below the Fair 
Grounds. There he meant to experiment in agriculture, and , at a cost of 
about $60,000, built a huge barn, then the largest and most costly one in 
the United States, and attracting so much attention that Horace Greeley 
came to examine it, and wrote an account of it for his Tribune. The barn 
was burned in 1885. Three sons of Mr. Leavitt subsequently established 
summer homes here, and also David S. Draper and M. Ludlow Whitlock, 
New York business men, and J. Milton Mackie, who came from the 
eastern part of this State, and whose "Pine Cliff," near Green Rivei", 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 83 



has a most beautiful outlook. Mr. Mackie is known for his literary- 
work, as a leading Jersey cattle breeder and as the president, a few 
years since, of the Jersey Cattle Club. 

Mrs. Maiik Hopkixs. 
Since the summer of 1883 Great Barrington has acquired increased 
fame from the doings of Mrs. Mark Hopkins, and the visitor is now first 
concerned to know about them. The Kellogg Terrace property, just 
south of the central portion of the village, having been given to her by 
the will of her aunt, Miss Nancy Kellogg, in 1881, Mrs. Hopkins had the 
old house repaired and elegantly refitted, and has since made the place 
her home a part of the summer or autumn, her other home, for winter and 
spring residence, being her princely house in San Francisco. In the spring 
of 1883, a $45,000 barn was built for her, but it was burned in December, 
188.5, and afterwards rebuilt. Her large gifts to the Congregational 
society, consummated in the spring of 1884, had become widely known, 
when shortly after, the news went to the remotest corner of the land 
that she would have a .$1,000,000 house built here. This is now building 
{spring of 1886). Its interior will be furnished in princely magnificence. 
On both sides of the river at this point Mrs. Hopkins owns about 200 
acres of land, including the large meadow between the house and the 
river and southward, a quarry of 70 acres on the west slope of Mount 
Bryant, and nearly the whole north half of Prospect Mountain, which 
rises abruptly from the river. Every purchase of land that she has made 
has created a panic in the real estate market. New undertakings in be- 
half of Mrs. Hopkins in this town are constantly being made known, and 
no description of her property, and what is, or is to be, done with it can 
be attempted at the issuing of this volume. 

The High Fountain. 
In the large meadow below the terrace a fountain has been constructed 
that sends a large column of water aloft to the extraordinary height of 
eighty to ninety feet, with the mountain background to show it off. In 
the first frosts of autumn, the water has a remarkable aj^pearance, for, 
at the rising of the sun, the spray that sheaths the column of descend- 
ing water, is converted into aqueous vaj^or, so that it rises and floats 
upon the lazy air, following graceful lines a thousand feet or more till it 
becomes invisible, or joins the low clouds or early morning vapors. The 
projected water then has no appearance of returning to the basin below, 
but all seems to be taking flight. 



84 the book of beuksiiire. 

One of the Earth's Choicest Views. 
The view from the street near Kelloirg Terrace is one of the choicest 
ones on the earth. It is there had in greatest i^erfection, though charm- 
ing phases of it are seen from otlier points, further south or up tlie 
westward hill. A gentleman who has spent several years in town, who 
has traveled extensively in Europe and America, and who has a keen 
and critical appreciation of the beautiful, is one of hundreds of similar 
people, who declare that there is no more lovely outlook than this, even 
in Switzerland or Italy. 

The Sunsets of Marvelous Beauty. 

The sunsets that are thrown upon this East Mountain are often of 
marvelous beauty. Some years they are absent; others, they are fre- 
quent, depending partly upon meteorological conditions. The best 
effect is obtained from the lower portions of the valley, because the ob- 
server is then in the shade of the western hill. Though visible at 
all times of the year, the best sunsets are in June, October and Novem- 
ber. The sunsets seen in the west by city, seacoast and prairie people, 
are incomparably inferior to the magnificent colorings of refracted sun- 
light, reflected upon the west side of this mountain on the east of the 
village, in mellow golden, in crimson, purple and many other tints. Sev- 
eral years ago a village resident was passing a man standing in the 
street below Kellogg Terrace when the latter, a stranger, waked from the 
spell that was upon him and ejaculated "There," with a gesture toward 
the mountain. No longer able to retain his admiration, he said that he 
had traveled far among the Alps and the Appenines, and beheld the 
richest sunshine of the old world, but had never found one that so deep- 
ly stirred his feelings as this one. The echoes of the locomotive whistle, 
from this mountain, continue for 50 seconds. 

The transformation of this prospect into a winter's scene is often 
of wonderful effect. The Berkshire Courier describes one as follows: 
"These are the days when to live in the country and see the beauties of a 
frosty morning is joy enough. One morning last week the sun looked 
over East Mountain and saw a cloud of frost crystals suspended in the 
air and rising from the meadows to the top of the mountain ; and as he 
threw the beams of his dazzling eye through the feathery prisms, a 
singular effect was visible to the observer from Main street. In the 
southeast stood a column of rainbow light, apparently a thousand feet 
high, and in the east was another of similar appearance. Berkshire in 
winter rivals Berkshire in summer." 



the book of bekkshire. 85 

The Congregational Church. 
No religious society elsewhere in a country town, and few in cities, 
have such a possession as that of the Congregational society in Great 
Barringtou. The cost of this was not far from $200,000, the cost of the 
land, which would be a principal item of expense in cities, being only an 
insignificant twentieth of the whole. The superiority of the blue dolo- 
mite, composing the buildings, over most other building stones, is here 
apparent. A description of the interior is unnecessary here, for visitors 
are admitted to the church, and as it is one of the notable churches of 
the country, all strangers coming to town ask permission to enter 
on week days, if they do not attend Sunday service. There is not a 
veneer about the whole building; all materials are the best and are 
* 'solid." The solid mahogany platform and pulpit are the gift of Mrs. 
J. M. Wasson of Pittsfield; and the mahogany furniture was given by 
Mr. and Mrs. Edward Leavitt of New York. The carved work, the 
decoration in colors, the stained glass and pictorial windows, and all the 
belongings are sure to attract admiring attention. The chapel is unex- 
celled and is connected with a ladies' parlor and kitchen thoroughly 
equipped with cooking utensils and chinaware. At the dedication, Sep- 
tember 26, 1883, the Rev. Dr. Mark Hopkins preached the sermon. 

The Best Organ Ever Made. ' 

The Roosevelt organ in this church cost over $30,000, and in mechan- 
ical construction excels every other organ in Europe and America. The 
size equals that of the average large organs at home and abroad, and it 
is doubtful if another so large a three-manual organ was ever made. 
The compass of the manuals is C C to A .3, 58 notes; of the pedals, 
C C C to F, 30 notes. The organ has 3,954 pipes, 60 speaking stops 
and 34 mechanical accessories of various kinds, among the latter being 
13 combination pistons, which, in a fraction of a second, bring into 
use combinations that have been made among 309 adjusters on the face 
of the key box. By their recent invention, which has been applied to 
only a very few organs, all of the Roosevelt make, the player can make 
any combinations of stops that he pleases before playing (billions 
of them are possible), and bring them into instant use by pressing the 
pistons. The best organ in Europe operates by pistons only 24 combin- 
ations, all fixed. 

An echo organ is behind the wall at the opposite end of the church 
and is operated over two and a half miles of electric wires. There are 
but few echo organs in the world. 



86 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIBE. 

It is only in the hands of a master that this organ ever begins to show 
its possibilities; indeed, only one of the expert organists who have 
played it, and he the most competetent one in the New World, if not in 
the whole world, has been able to do justice to the instrument. Public re- 
citals are given by Frederick Archer every summer. The ebony and an- 
tique mahogany case, ornamented by the best carvers in America, was the 
design of the London architect, G. A. Audsley. The S3 front pipes ai"e 
decorated with $250 worth of gold leaf. The generosity of this gift has 
been ascribed to Timothy Hopkins, treasurer of the Central I'acific 
Railroad Company ; and also to Mrs. Mark Hopkins. 

The Parsonage. 
The parsonage, its furniture, and the barn cost about .^100,000. Here is a 
most luxurious home, that is all the gift of Mrs. Mark Hopkins in memory 
of her husband's great-grandfather, the Rev. Dr. Samuel Hopkins, the 
pastor of this church from 1743 to 1770, who was the author of the 
famous Hopkinsian doctrines, and one of the vigorous thinkers of his 
time. Mrs. Hopkins and her brother-in-law, Moses Hopkins, of San 
Francisco, each contributed $5,000 toward the cost of building the 
church and chapel. 

The First Armed Resistance in the Revolution. 
Great Barrington has the honor of being the first place in the Thirteen 
Colonies where the first armed resistance was made to the dominion of 
George III, and his ofiBcers openly defied and bereft of authority. On 
the l(3th of August, 1774, more than eight months before the battle of 
Lexington, the judges of the Crown came here, then the shire town, to 
hold court; but they were prevented from doing so by a large concourse 
of men, principally from the south end of Berkshire county and the 
north end of Litchfield county, Conn. The judges were driven from 
town, and from that day Berkshire has known no authority beyond the 
people. It may not be that they were more liberty loving than people 
elsewhere; but it has, nevertheless, been observed ever since the days of 
Montesquieu that the inhabitants of mountainous countries are very in- 
tolerant of restrictions upon their freedom. The Shays rebellion of 
1786-7, against burdensome taxes and imprisonment for debt, made 
Great Barrington a historical scene of action, and culminated in a 
pitched battle in the northwest part of Sheffield, a few rods south of 
the Goodale quarry. The men of Berkshire and the other counties 
of Western Massachusetts constituted the two best and most famous 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 87 

regiments of the Army of the Potomac in the Civil War — the Tenth 
and the Tliirty-seventh — adding new evidence of the patriotism and 
spirit of liberty pervading the region. 

William Cullen Bryant. 

William Cullen Bryant's residence in this town, 1815-25, has left asso- 
ciations that will always endure. The strong impressions that the sur- 
roundings made upon his poetic nature found some voice in his poem on 
Green River, a stream a mile west of the village, that "glides along, 
through its beautiful banks, in a trance of song;" in his Monument 
Mountain, an elevation in the town, half way towards Stockbridge; and 
about two scores of others, among them being " The Ages," " The Rivu- 
let," "Autumn Woods," "After a Tempest," " Forest Hymn," "A Win- 
ter Piece," "The West Wind," and "A Walk at Sunset." These works 
of the jjoet were all the inspiration of the Nature in which he lived. In- 
deed, Berkshire is a vast volume of poems that no pen can fully tran- 
scribe, no words adequately express. Mr. Bryant was town clerk for 
several years, and the records, abounding in his autographs, are pre- 
served. He made record of his marriage to Frances Fairchild, of this 
town, which took place in the Henderson house, June 11, 1821, aud re- 
corded the birth of his first child. The old house stands on Main street, 
opposite Kellogg Terrace — a house that was used for storing Revolution- 
ary supplies, and where General Burgoyne stayed one night on his way 
to Boston after the Saratoga defeat, when General Dwight lived there. 
In connection with the Initial letter of this paper on Great Barrington, 
we give a picture of the house as it now appears. 

Among the prose work that Mr. Bryant did while here was "A Border 
Tradition," that he wrote for the United States Bevleio and Literary 
Gazette. The meadow south of Kellogg Terrace was once a swamp, and 
was supposed to be haunted. At any rate, strange lights had been seen 
there. The story, as built upon this, was published in October, 1826, 
and may be found in The Berkshire Courier of October 3, 1867. 

Monument Mountain. 
Long famous for the views of extraordinary beauty from its summit 
and from its dizzy precipice. Monument Mountain, four miles from the 
village, is a choice possession, even in Great Barrington. A fine tribute 
to this mountain comes from " Octavia Hensel" (Lady AUce Seymour), 
a native of this town, in a letter a few years ago from Austria, describing 
a concert given by Liszt, whose music brought back to her memory a 



88 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 




Monument Mountain from Under the Cliffs. 



THE BOOK OF BEKKSIIIKE. 89 



visit to this mountain. The apparent fancy of the description has an 
objective reaUty; for Natui-e, in Berkshire, goes hand in hand with 
Fancy : 

"Liszt sat down to the piano. Many years ago a little child climbed 
to the top of Monument Mountain, among the Berkshire Hills. She 
wandered away from the merry party of parents and friends, and found 
a marble nook under a gray rock, fringed with ferns and lichens. Down 
on the moss bed, aamng the wintergreen berries, she knelt to look over 
the frightful preciijice into the valley where pines and hemlocks waved. 
She heard only the sad sighing of wind in the pines, she saw only cloud 
shadows moving over the landscape, but they were replaced by a haze of 
golden glory; for, ' after the shadow, the golden sun' smiles on the field 
lily bells, and sets them ringing for joy. The child could not hear these 
flower bells ringing, but she thought she did; she saw the bright waters 
of the Housatonic 'winding through meadows in a path of light' and 
the sunbeams playing among the tree shadows over the stream, and the 
silly child thought she heard the fairies laugh at this game of hide and 
seek. The glorious mountains that wall in the Housatonic Valley stood 
solemn and dark away to the north ; the awful precipice above which the 
child stood filled her with that unspeakable awe which we sometimes 
feel when organ notes announce in the Te Deum the majesty of earth's 
glory." Berkshire is not only a poem, but it is a poem set to entrancing 
music. 

Of Monument Mountain, Prof. Hitchcock writes: "It does not rise 
more than 500 feet above the plain and l.^oO feet above tide water; but 
its eastern side is an almost perpendicular wall of white granular quartz; 
iind, jshooting out boldly, as it does, into the heart of a beautiful country, 
the prospect from its summit is delightful. * * * In several places 
frowning masses [of rock] are still left projecting from the cliff, more 
than 200 feet above the base, still holding on to the parent rock with ap- 
parent firmness. And it is an interesting trial of the nerves to creep to 
the edge of these jutting masses, and to look down upon the fragments 
some hundreds of feet below. * * * ]Vear the highest part of this 
cliff, a pointed mass of rock, only a few feet in diameter, has been parted 
at the top of the mountain; but its base not giving way, it now stands 
insulated, and from 50 to 100 feet high" on different sides. It is called 
Pulpit Hock, and is very difiicult of ascent, though a few people have 
been to its top. 

The name of this mount:tin is derived from a monument of stones that 
hnd been m \de by Indians at the foot of the southern slope of the higher 



90 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 

part of the mountain. The tradition on which Bryant's poem was 
founded was told by an aged Indian woman, who said that an Indian 
maiden, having formed a passionate attachment for a young brave, who 
was her cousin and whom the customs of her tribe forbade her to marry, 
threw herself from the precipice, and that she was buried where the 
Indians, passing that way, have each placed a stone. Another tradition 
has it that the pile marks the spot where invading Indians were slaugh- 
tered by the resident Indians. Still another is that the heap was raised 
over the grave of the first sachem who died after the Indians came 
into the region; and, again, it is said to have been a territorial boundary 
between tribes. The accepted conclusion now is that the monument has 
a religious import, and was very likely connected with the burial of some 
Indian. Whites scattered the stones half a century ago, and dug to find 
treasure or human bones, but were unsuccessful. The cairn was replaced 
in 1884. 

Belcher's Cave. 

In the north end of the village, where a spur of the mountains comes 
to an abrupt end, a cave is formed by the disruption and falling together 
of rocks. It is known as Belcher's Cave, because tradition says that a 
man named Belcher counterfeited silver coin there before the Revolu- 
tion. The place is often made the object of easy, summer day's walks 
by those who want to see what the rough hand of Nature has done, and 
to get the refreshing coolness imparted to the air by rocks and shade. 

Mount Peter. 
A more pleasant walk, and an easy one, is to Mount Peter, in the south 
end of the village, from whose summit charming views may be had. On 
this mount. President Garfield sat on August 2.5, 1854, on his way to col- 
lege, and wrote some verses to an unknown maiden who had some stanzas 
on "Morning in Berkshire" published in the village paper. The Berkshire 
Courier, a few days before. The story, and all the verses, may be found 
in the files of the Courier in the issue of September 21, 1881. 

Berkshire Heights. 
A walk or a ride of only a few minutes will take one to Berkshire 
Heights, the view from which is not excelled in all Berkshire. Some of 
the land here was bought in 1885 by the Berkshire Heights Land Com- 
pany, for the purpose of opening it up for dwelling house building for 
city people. Beautiful streets have been made, lots laid out, and several 
buildings will be put up in 1886-7. The purest water from Green River will 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 91 



be supplied under pressure from a tower, to which it will be forced by a. 
water company, one of the three water companies in the village. Ten gen- 
tlemen have pledged themselves to erect as many houses at an early day,, 
their names being as follows: John Townshend, C. G. Comstock, W. E. 
Cooper, W. D. Ryder, T. J. Pell, Dr. Ripley, all of New York; W. C. 
Brocklesby, Hartford; and Senator H. C. Joyner, Caleb Ticknor, and E. 
D. Brainerd, all of Great Barrington. These gentlemen go into this for 
the establishment of country homes, and most of these new houses will 
be occupied by the owners. Negotiations are pending with several 
others, and it is certain that, at no distant time, Berkshire Heights will 
be the country home of fifty families and more. The Land Company 
already owns about 100 acres, which have been divided into over forty 
lots. A charming pine grove is reserved for a park and an observation 
tower, from which the view will be perfectly ravishing. The view is far 
superior to an adjacent one from a lower elevation, referred to by the 
Rev. T. T. Hunger as one of the few most beautiful of the famous land- 
scape views that are to be had in the world. The natural drainage of 
this hill is excellent. The hill is one-half mile from the railroad station; 
its elevation is 264 feet above Main street, 'JSO feet above tide water, and 
from it scenery of great variety and a profusion of beauty spreads out 
on every side, extending into Connecticut, New York, and Vermont. A 
hotel site has been reserved in a most charming location. This move- 
ment is the beginning of an enterprise that will make available for 
habitation a most delightful hill on the western edge of the village, and 
is one of the steps toward the end whither all Berkshire is tending— the 
creation of Country Homes. 

East Rock and Prospect Rock. 

A more difficult walk is the path to East Rock and the top of Mount 
Bryant, at an elevation of 1,448 feet above the sea, 725 feet above the^ 
railroad station, and about 775 feet above the river. This huge boulder, 
left by a glacier hanging on the brow of the mountain, affords a resting 
place commanding one of the broadest and finest of Berkshire's many- 
mountain top outlooks. Its beauty is unspeakable, and no one should 
fail to catch its inspiration. The path leads across the top of the mount- 
ain to the eastern brow, where the scene from Forest View suggests the 
name. At a slight expense, a good road can be made to this summit. 
East Mountain, south of Mount Bryant, is 1,700 feet high. 

A more easy walk, along a woodlmd path, is that to Prospect Rock;, 
and some visitors pause on the way to call on Crosby, the gunsmith. 



^2 the book of berkshire. 

June Mountain. 

A walk of perhaps seven miles, that is productive of much enjoyment, 
is to follow the road between East and Prospect Mountains as far down 
■as " Brookside," and then leave the road and walk to the left, along the 
*dge of the woods on the mountain side, up to the place where Eoaring 
Brook comes off the mountain top. The view here is a choice one. Then 
•cross over to June Mountain by Mark Laird's house, and get the southern 
view from that mountain, the beauty of which cannot be excelled. Re- 
turn via the east road to Sheffield. The last view may be had easier by 
Tiding down this Sheffield road to a place just north of the first house; 
then walk a few hundred feet up the mount lin. 

Another walk, but in the edge of the village, exposing some of the very 
best of Berkshire's scenes, leads a little past Major Gibbons's place on 
the Egremont road; then off the road, up the hill through the small 
pines, where the views change every few feet; then up to Berkshire 
Heights, to Mcinstield Lake and to Ames's Hill. 

Lake Buel. 
Lake Buel, six miles distant, is a beautiful sheet of water, lying a few 
Tods beyond the eastern boundary of the town, to which thousands of 
people go every summer. Accommod itions for the public are sufficient 
in the way of boats, picnic grounds, horse feeding, and so on, at both 
«uds of the lake. The name of the lake is from Samuel Buel, who, July 
23, 1812, saved from drowning four of seven persons whose boat was 
<5apsized. This is one of the most frequented lake resorts in Berk- 
shire, and several people go so far as to have small cottages for a few 
weeks' residtnce there. 

Ice Gulf. 

In the mountain west of the lake, half a mile back of the house of 
•George L. Turner, is a singular ch ism cilled Ice Gulf. The width is 
forty to fifty feet, the per|iendicular walls are eighty feet high in some 
places, and the length is about eighty rods. Huge rocks have fallen 
from above and filled it twenty feet or more, and among them ice 
is found late, if not all summer. The mountain is actually cleft in 
twain. The place is exceedingly wild, an icy chill always pervades the 
air, and the light of day is hai'dly more than a gloom. Among the theories 
■of this curious formation is that of an earthquake, while President Hitch- 
<50ck's idea, in his " Geology of Massachusetts," is that it is a " purga- 
tory" made by the sea during the partial submergence of the Atlantic 
•coast. 



tue book of berksuire. - 93i. 

Mineral Springs. 
The Soda Spring, three miles from the village, in that part of Sheffield 
called Bi'ush Hill, has long been sought for its curative effects on cu- 
taneous diseases. The summer hotel that once existed there was burnt, 
several years ago, but was never rebuilt. To this spring, and to a neigh- 
boring Sulphur Spring, many people go to fill jugs and kegs. 

Long Lake. 
There is no lake in the county whose immediate surroundings ar& 
more picturesque than those of Long Lake, three miles to the west of 
north. Going over the Christian Hill road, one beholds the best scenery 
in panoramic array. The lake has an Adirondack appearance, with its 
forest margin, its clear water, and the overhanging mountain. 

Beartown. 
The wildest inhabited part of the town is the northeast corner, called 
Beartown, and ascended from South Lee. Two miles from that village^ 
at the end of a private road, beginning on the left at an old saw mill^ 
lives Levi Beebe, a mountain farmer, who has attained reputation for^ 
great originality as a weather prophet. From his house the northern 
view is remarkably beautiful. The drive up the gorge, the ride througlx 
the woods and a talk with Mr. Beebe are a rare treat. 

The Village of Great Barrington. 
The village of Great Barrington has unexcelled natural advantages in; 
the picturesque and the beautiful. Variety is prolific, and surprises are- 
unceasing. Village neatness is conspicuous, and is growing; the street 
fences are nearly all removed ; handsome lawns, nice houses and graceful 
trees are on every hand; and an air of thrift, comfort and substantial 
well-being pervades. 

A Hundred Walks and Drives. 
While some walks and drives have been mentioned, they are but a few 
out of a hundred or more that are each different from the rest, and all 
which embrace myriad charms. Whatever way one turns, he cannot go 
amiss of seeing what will provoke his deepest admiration. Several 
views have been painted by artists of established reputation, among 
them being J. B. Bristol, N. A., who commonly spends the summer here. 
Within the town there are about ninety miles of roads. Beyond the^ 
town's limits, the objects of a day's or half day's ride are many — 



94 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 

in Mount Washington, Bashbish Falls, Bear Rock, the Dome, and 
other summits; in Sheffield, Sage's Ravine; White's Hill, near North 
Egremont; the Twin Lakes, in Salisbury, Ct. ; on the north, many points 
in Stockbridge and Lenox; and many other attractions that will be found 
mentioned elsewhere in this volume. The roads over which these places 
are approached are most excellent. They are nearly all made of gravel; 
they are smooth, hard and free from loose stones. Great Barrington 
annually spends from $<5,000 to $12,000 in the care and construction of 
I'oads and bridges. 

A Remarkable Story 
Of a Hancock farmer is preserved. He was arrested for high treason in 
the Revolution, and was lodged in the Great Barrington log jail; but 
such was his character for honesty, that he was allowed to go out 
to work where he could pick up a shilling, upon promise to return 
at night. He did this for eight months, and when the sheriff was about 
to take him to Springfield for trial, he assured the officer that he would 
go alone, and was allowed to do so. After a journey of forty-two miles 
on foot, he arrived at court, was tried, and was sentenced to be hanged, 
but was pardoned. The story is found in the old-time school books. 

Old Macedonia. 
The old cannon in front of the Soldiers' Monument is the relic of a 
famous naval achievement, the capture of the British .38- gun frigate 
"Macedonian" by the " United States," commanded by Captain Deca- 
tur, October 25, 1812, after a fight of two hours. For many years "Old 
Macedonia" celebrated Independence Day with as loud a voice as when 
it shot down Yankee tars, until a few years ago, when it became so 
honeycombed by rust that its firing was dangerous. 

A Refuge from Tax Robbers. 
As a place of low taxation. Great Barrington is a very desirable resi- 
dence for people who have property. After all has been said, no one can 
blame wealthy people for escaping from the clutches of city municipal 
extravagance and thievery, and from the grog shop politicians who bleed 
them. The debt of the town is substantially nothing; in 1886, it is $3,461, 
while the fire district debt is about $2,000. The town's tax in 1885 was 
a little over $28,000, and of the fire district less than $3,000. To pay the 
amount raised by taxation, property worth $2,845,517 was assessed at the 
remarkably low rate of $8.70 on $1,000. The town has no extraordinary 
expenses ahead of it, and, with the accession of Mrs. Hopkins's property 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIKE. 95 



to the taxable valuation this year, the rate will go considerably lower, and 
always be low. City taxation averages from $15 to $20 per $1,000. New 
York's rate in 1885 was $24; in 1876, $28. The rate in nine Connecticut 
cities in 1885 averaged $19. In 1883, the rate in Brooklyn was $23.20; 
Newark, N. J., $24.40; Poughkeepsie, N. Y., $25.30; Albany, $19.20; Bos- 
ton, $15.10; Hartford, $18.10; Philadelphia, $19. Great Barrington, be- 
sides being a delightful home, is a refuge from this robbery. 

The Fair of the Housatonic Society. 
City people who remain here till the last week of September will be 
much interested to see a country fair — the " honest farmers " showing 
their cattle, sheep and horses, and, above all, the queer mixture of hu- 
manity that assembles from farm, village, and remote hills. The fair of 
the Housatonic Agricultural Society, in this village, is next to the largest 
one in the State; it has an attendance of 12,000 to 15,000 people, and a 
large show of domestic animals and manufactures of unquestionable ex- 
cellence. 

Some Natives and Residents. 

The house on the summit of the hill on the old road to Seekonk was 
built by the Rev. Dr. Samuel Hopkins, and was tenanted by him. Wil- 
liam C. Bryant had his office at one time in the wing of Bazy W. Patti- 
son's house, and once lived in the house where Charles J. Taylor lives. 
In M. Ludlow Whitlock's house. General Timothy Wainwright once 
lived. In 1822, the Leavenworth house, the second on the right above 
the railroad on Castle street, was built, then the finest in town. 
Elias W. Leavenworth, who passed his youth in the village, now of 
Syracuse, N. Y., has been a distinguished citizen of that State, and held 
numerous high offices, among them being that of Secretary of State. 
Theodore Sedgwick, a man of national distinction in his day, studied 
and practiced law here for a few years. 

In later years other men, more or less known to fame, have found 
homes in this town. From 1840 to 1845, the Rev. Charles B. Boynton, 
preA^ously engaged in business in West Stockbridge, preached in the 
Congregational church in Housatonic village ; subsequently he became a 
well known preacher in Cincinnati, was chaplain of the XXXIXth and 
XLth Congresses, and wrote several books. His son, General H. Y, 
Boynton, became the Washington correspondent of the Cincinnati Com- 
mercial Gazette, and another son, C. A. Boynton, Washington agent of 
the Western Associated Press. The Rev. Mr. Boynton's successor in 
Housatonic, was the Rev. J. T. Headley, famous for his biographies 



96 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 

The Pope house on South Main street, the old brick house built in 
1766, was the early home of Frank L. Pope, the eminent electrician, who- 
explored Alaska and neighboring British America in the interest of the 
overland telegraph, who wrote " The Modern Practice of the Electric 
Telegraph," which has had a greater sale than all other works on elec- 
tricity put together, was chiefly instrumental in establishing the stock 
reporting business, was originator of the private line service, was in- 
ventor of the first and best electric signals for railways, and has been 
constantly active in literary and scientific work. Mr. Pope owns the 
ancestral homestead and the north end of June Mountain, where he has 
built a small hou^e in a sightly location, and will build a much finer 
house for his country home. Mr. Pope's youthful associates here wer& 
Thomas Maguire, the late famous correspondent of the Boston Herald, 
and the late Merret Seeley, superintendent of the National Express Com- 
pany. Mr. Pope's younger brothers are well known among electricians: 
Ralph W. Pope for his services to the Gold and Stock Telegraph Com- 
pany, and, later, as editor of the Electrician and Electrical Engineer; and 
Henry W. Pope as the chief organizer of the District Telegraph system, 
of New York and Eastern cities. 

Of the children of Judge Increase Sumner, one of the leading lawyers. 
of the State during his long practice in this town, Samuel B. Sumner, of 
Bridgeport, Ct., was colonel of the Forty-ninth Massachnsetts Regiment- 
and a judge in his adopted city; Charles A. Sumner, of San Francisco, is. 
one of the orators of the Pacific coast, where he has made a wide reputa- 
tion as a talented journalist and politician; and Albert I. Sumner, the 
musician and composer, was lost in shipwreck. Some of the best busi- 
ness blood in Chicago, the most energetic city in the world, has gone 
from Berkshire, and the representatives from Great Barrington ar& 
Charles H. Fargo, one of the first men of the city; Rufus P. Pattison,. 
James L. Pattison, the late Henry K. Buell, all well known business- 
men. 

The Berkshire House and Other Accommodations. 

Summer and autumn guests find ample accommodations in public and: 
private houses in Great Barrington. For many years the Berkshire 
House, in the village center, has been famous among people who come 
this way for its choice entertainment, and it never stood so high as under 
its present landlord, Caleb Ticknor. It is not so large nor so small that a- 
guest feels lonesome ; on the contrary, he becomes the member of a large 
family, as it were, whei-e his comforts are looked after attentively, but. 
not with obtrusion. Mr. Ticknor is one of the few men born to manage 



THE BOOK OF BEHKSITIRE. 97 

the affairs of an inn. His natural politeness, affability and accommo- 
dating disposition are such as to win for him the liking of all his guests. 
Under such administration, the Berkshire House has attained an enviable 
reijutation, and has become a choice resort for those who want to spend 
the season or a vacation at a hotel. 

The Collins House, in the south part of the village, under the proprie- 
torship of Alfred Peck, makes a specialty of summer and autumn guests. 
It has entertained many noted people, and is particularly agreeable in 
having a village situation, and yet in being quiet and having country 
surroundings that are delightful. 

There are many boarding houses in the village and among the farm 
houses outside, and several furnished houses may be hired for the 
season. 

The Miller House makes a specialty of accommodating travelers, and 
has never stood so well with the public as under the proprietorship of 
W. B. Loveland, for the last few years. 

The People Who Come Here. 

A stranger coming to Berkshire can find congenial, social surroundings, 
no matter what his wants are; but he must use discretion in selecting the 
place. Some idea of what Great Barrington offers has already been 
given, but the mention of at least a few of the people who come here is 
in order. Of tlie people previously named, nearly all who are living are 
visitors for long or short time. 

Pteferring to people who have other homes in cities or elsewhere, 
country homes are owned in Great Barrington by Mrs. Mark Hopkins, 
" Kellogg Terrace;" Dr. H. F. Quackenboss, of New York, " Jumbo Cot- 
tage;" Major William H. Gibbons, of Savannah, Ga. ; Howard Ackerman, 
of New York; H. M. Johnson, Buffalo; Frank L. Pope, Elizabeth, X. J., 
"Wild wood." 

Among those who have come here to retire to a country home are J. 
Milton Mackie; Harry Y. Leavitt, from New York; E. D. Brainard, from 
Albany. 

Within a yeai- or so, houses were rented to these people: William 
Stanley, Englewood, N. J. ; Mrs. Emma J. Peck, Brooklyn, N. Y. ; 
Samuel L. Harris, Brooklyn; Miss Sarah E. Wickham, Brooklyn; Mrs. 
J. H. Heroy, New York; E. A. Doup, Brooklyn; G. W. Peters, Newark, 
N. J.; W. D. Hubbard, Hartford; G. T. Harris, Philadelphia. 

Among the Berkshire House guests within a year or so have been .J. W. 
Emerson, A. P. Burbank, W. D. Howells, Edward G. Dickson, B. G. 
7 



98 THE BOOK OF BEKKSHIKE. 

Talbert, Dr. Ripley, T. J. Pell, W. D. Eyder, Woodruff Sutton, all of New 
York; Captain Henry Erben, of the Portsmouth Navy Yard; J. M. Brook- 
field, William H. Wright, Abram Lowerre, all of Brooklyn; W. D. Bishop, 
Bridgeport, Ct. ; Fi-ank A. Day, Boston; Prof. H. F. Walling, Cambridge, 
Mass. ; Thomas G. Pitch, C. H. Lounsbury, both of Stamford, Ct. ; N. H. 
Sanford, Prof. James D. Dana, both of New Haven. 

At the Collins House, L. M. Bates, of New York, stayed several sea- 
sons. Among other guests have been the following: Mrs. B. H. Van 
Auken, William H. Bradford, S. Inslee, Jr. (of Calhoun, Robbins & Co.), 
John LeBoutillier (of LeBoutillier Bros.), J. T. Sparkman, William O. 
Sumner, Leonard J. Carpenter, Samuel Keefer (proprietor Grand Central 
Hotel), all of New York; Mrs. E. Reid, New Rochelle, N. Y. ; William J. 
Sayres, John Vanderbilt, both of Brooklyn. 

Most of the boarding houses of Berkshire accommodate from five to 
fifteen guests each. In the houses in and around Great Barrington 
village, any one desiring entertainment will find everything to his com- 
fort, and such varied social surroundings that he will find anything to 
his liking. For young jieople, all sorts of outdoor sports are feasible, on 
land and water, with no lack of companions and contestants — in tennis, 
base ball, foot ball, wheeling, swimming, boating, and so on. 

The mail facilities of Great Barrington are excellent. There are three 
mails each way between the town and New York. A letter mailed in 
New York in the evening is received here at 9.30 A. m., and a letter 
mailed here at 8 p. m. is received in New York at the first delivery. An 
Albany evening paper is received at 5 p. m.. New York evening papers at 
8 P. M. New York morning papers are received at 1 p. m. There is a 
Sunday mail, arriving from New York with morning papers at noon and 
letters mailed Saturday evening. 

A Painteks'. Paradise. 

For the last half century, Great Barrington has been known to many of 
our great masters of landscape painting. Here came Durand and Ken- 
sett, besides many of their associates, and here Bristol often has his 
summer home. These lovers of the beautiful in scenery have sketched 
many of the picturesque views of the vicinity, and have done their share 
with Bryant to make the whole region classic. 

Varied Scenes. 
Henry Parker Fellows, who has made several canoe voyages, in a 
description of a canoe trip down the Housatonic in 1881, says of the 
journey through tji-eat Barrington: "The Housatonic is a confirmed 



THE BOOK OF BEKKSIIIRE. 



99 




100 , THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 



coquette, constantly flirting with one mountain range or another, and 
frequently several at the same time. * * * The sun after a while dis- 
appeared in a cloud of fire behind the Taconic Dome, which towers 
2,000 feet above the valley, a solemn mass of darkest green, while Monu- 
ment Mountain, at the other end of the valley, stood out in pui'plish 
glow, clear and distinct in the still air. I remember no river scene, in- 
deed, of greater beauty. The sti'eam itself, too, was very beautiful. The 
banks on either side sloped down to the water's very edge of smooth 
turf, broken, however, by a clump of trees, or masses of clustering vines, 
and we occasionally passed a little inlet, usually guarded by a martial 
array of cat-tails. * * * There is a stateliness and dignity about 
Great Barrington as great in reality as its high-sounding name would 
imply. It is a rare combination of Xew England thrift and New York 
opulence. Beecher it is, I believe, who once declared that he never 
entered the village without wishing that he was never to leave it." 

" Octavia Hensel," referring to the scenes about town, tells how they 
will hold sway after they have become impressed upon the beholder: 
*' Mount Peter will still rise high above the Housatonic meadow, its 
gray marble rocks half hidden by nodding hairbells and tufts of red 
columbine, and the village will peep out from the groves of elm and 
maple, while far to the north the Mountain of the Monument will fling 
its boldly curved outline against a turquoise sky. Over the winding 
oziers that border the Housatonic on the east, the great rock of East 
Mountain will rise in solitary grandeur above the dark green masses of 
the woodland hills, and reflect in splendor of topaz and amethyst the 
sunsets bui-ning behind the distant Dome of purple Taconic's mighty 
range. Away to the south, the low mound of the Indian burial ground 
will lie an embankment across the shadowy Mahaiwe vale — an outpost to 
guard the village homes from tlie ghostly array which imagination pict- 
ures in the white birch forests stretching away to the Sheffield plain. 
To the west, reaching almost to the woodlands at the base of the great 
mountain dome, where the purple light deepens to Tyrian hues in the 
coming on of night, the Egremont plains will appear like an emerald 
clasped on the hills' imperial mantle." 

Under the new life that has been given to Great Barrington within a 
few years, the town is coming into greater prominence than ever as 
a summer and autumn resort; and, while it is sought more than ever by 
appreciative tourists, and by the visitors of a week, a month, or a sea- 
son, it is also becoming highly valued, by people M'ho i-etire from work 
or leave the city, as a most perfect location for Country Homes. 




PIXTSFIELD. 



ROUND tlie town of Pittsfield, the valley in 
wliicli it lies, is practically a large amphi- 
theater, nearly hemmed in on all sides by 
mountain ranges or high hills. Washington 
Mountain walls in the town from the east; 
the valley narrows to the north, with occa- 
sional spurs of the mountains and hills in 
|,jj.^ ^1 ; '] Lanesboro and Cheshire ; to the south are 

seen the South Mountain, and the range 
j furlher west towards the Richmond line; 
md on the west are the Taconics, with 
_li^._ --'.^ __^;^.,...^^-_- i^'rry's Peak in Richmond, and Potter 
Mountain to the northwest. This largest 
town in the country, with its wide streets, stately elms, the thrift 
and intelligence of its inhabitants, at once apparent, and the general 
appearances on all hands, denoting substantial well being, — possessing 
all these, this town has a dignity, a maturity, a stability, that are im- 
pressed upon every visitor. 

Genebal Aspect. 
In Berkshire, where every one of its thirty-two towns has its own 
peculiar natural advantages and attractions, it is difficult to say what 
is the most pleasing or abounding most richly in that which is grandest 
and best. Pittstield has six lakes, either wholly or in part within her 
borders, some of them of considerable size; and at each side of the 
town, east and west. How the two sources of the Housatonic River, 
uniting nearly at its south border line. There is no end of "views," 
some of them bewitchingly grand, and many quiet nooks, suggestive of 
romance and legend; while, from almost any point, Greylock looms up in 
all its grandeur and pride, as though keeping sentinel over the northern 
portal to the valleys lying at its feet — the Hoosac and the Housatonic. 
Pittsfield, as seen from such an elevation as that on the hillsides of 
Washington up to Lake Ashley, or from Potter Mountain, with the great 



102 THE BOOK OF BEKKSIIIRE. 

village in the distance, and the two lakes, Onota and Pontoosuc, appar- 
ently at your feet — from South Mountain, or, in fact, from any point — is 
a lovely picture. Go up to the Davol place, on North street, and you 
look into the town as over a panorama; from the hose tower of the fire 
department is another excellent view, from the roof of the Academy o'f 
Music, from the observatory at Maplewood, and many other points, and 
the effect is beautiful in the extreme. An excellent view to the west is 
obtained from the upper stories of the Berkshire Life Insurance building. 

Town Affairs. 

Pittsfield has a history peculiar to itself, from the earliest times taking 
pride in its traditions and its records, so that, whatever the angry debate 
of the town meeting or the internal dissensions there may have been over 
policy and measures for the government of its affairs, in the end the best 
generally prevails, the good judgment of the wisest and those having its 
affairs most deeply at heart is finally adopted, with no grudges to pay 
off in after yeai'S, and no retaliation because certain men or measures 
have succeeded. That is a healthy eccentricity of the town politically. 

Pittsfield, with its population of about 14, .500 in ISSG, is the largest 
municipality under the simple rule of a " Massachusetts town govern- 
ment" in the United iStates; in fact, it is a combination of city affairs 
under town rule. It has its police regulations, sewers, water works, 
electric lights, fire department and fire alarm telegraph, street cars and 
telephone communication, as a city would have, while at the same time 
the ways of the fathers have not been changed, and the annual town 
meeting, with its moderator, and a free and full discussion of all matters 
in the "warrant," is still an institution of the shire town. Although 
there is a movement for a city charter, it is nevertheless advocated with 
only the end in view that the town as a whole may be benefited. The 
pride of the average Pittsfield citizen is in its good name, whether the 
town be his by birth or adoption. 

Railroad communication has done a great deal for Pittsfield, even 
before most of the other parts of the county were so highly favored; 
New York and Boston are only about five hours away, with many trains 
daily each way. In 1868 the town became the county seat, and with that 
change has come the addition of the fine marble court house, opened in 
1871, as well as the jail, which is one of the places of interest in the 
town to visit. The county officials, removing from Lenox, were a valu- 
ble addition to the town's citizenship, and many other people have been 
attracted to its borders on that account. 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 103 

The manufacturing of Pittsfield, while extensive and increasing, is to 
a great extent liidden away, as it were, in the extremities of the town, 
and there is little or none of it along the principal streets. There are 
several thriving and well kept manufacturing villages; so that, while 
adding wealth and prosperity, they are not as detrimental to its attract- 
iveness as a resort as they would be were the industries sandwiched in 
with handsom-3 residences and its public buildings, or occupying its 
most attractive positions. 

A Healthy Aristocracy. 

The earliest settlers were among the best. Men with a reputation, 
men of influence, patriotic in time of war, and earnest in everything 
which, according to their judgment, augmented the interests of the 
town in an educational, social and religious sense. The famous " Fight- 
ing Parson Allen," when he left his sermon to participate in the Battle 
of Bennington, was a fair type of his parishioners then, and that same 
spirit prevails yet. It was early made a residence by a healthy aristoc- 
racy, not purse-proud or arrogant; but the history of the town shows 
that its wealth and its culture, its bravery and its social element, have 
all been the instrumentalities in keeping Pittsfield in the ranks of " the 
best," and her people all along its history have caught the spirit of 
the grandeur about them, vieing with each other — speaking in general 
terms — in making the town a pleasant and safe dwelling place for its peo- 
ple, and offering them all the advantages possible under the circumstances. 
The " old families," like the Pomeroys, the Williamses, the Aliens, the 
Francises, the Parkers, the Goodriches, the Churchills, the Colts, Dun- 
hams, Stearnses, Plunketts, Clapps, Campbells, Barkers, Brewsters, 
Merrills, Russells, Childses, Col. John Brown, and scores of other names, 
who have been instrumental in moulding the town in its early days, 
have in their descendants men and women who love Pittsfield because 
they think the good old town is worthy of it, which has a healthy 
stimulating influence on the rest of the community. Thus much for 
the sooial atmosphere of Pittsfield; and, year by year, the improve- 
ments in better things — better schools, better sidewalks, better homes, 
and, in fact, better government every way — goes on, to the end that the 
visitor seeking rest may be attracted to its gates and within its walls, 
while at the same time its own children may also be educated to know 
more of the better ways of living. 

The character of its visitors has, in a great degree, been moulded by 
its citizens, and during llie past few years the attractions of Pittsfield, 



104 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 



as well as other portions of Berkshire, have been very effectively set 
forth by the advertising literature of the Berkshire Life Insurance Com- 
pany, which, while advancing its own interests in a very praiseworthy 
manner, has also given the great world outside to know more and more 
of the attractions of Pittsfield and Berkshire than had been known 
before. 

A Literary Tone. 

Pittsfield has, from its earliest time almost, been known as a literary 
town, and as one looks back over the pages of its history, so pleasantly 
and accurately told by J. E. A. Smith, he finds that there have been 
scholars and writers, poets and novelists, and others of that class, who 
have given the town a healthier atmosphere for their having lived within 
its bordei's. Its appropriations for schools are always large and gen- 
erous; its churches are, as a whole, prosperous and well supported, while 
the church edifices are in keeping with the spirit of the town — commo- 
dious, comfortable and attractive, without show or gaudiness. Its pulpits 
have always been filled by prominent clergymen of the type of Parson 
Thomas Allen, who for many years served at the First church, taking an 
active part in moulding its affairs and those of the town, so that the 
present generation is reaping the benefits of his teaching. There were 
the Kev. Dr. Heman Humphrey; the Rev. Dr. John Todd, whose mem- 
ory is still green in Pittsfield, whose books have gladdened many hearts 
and been translated into many tongues; the Rev. Dr. William C. Rich- 
ards, who for some time ofiiciated at the Baptist church, a poet and 
scholar; while, later, came the Rev. J. L. Jenkins of the Fii'st church, 
Rev. William Wilberforce Newton of St. Stephen's, an author of note and 
the originator of the plan for the Church Congress, whereby all denom- 
inations may work in unity — a creation worthy of the grand old town in 
which it first saw the light of day and the liberal, progressive men who 
originated it. 

Dr. Oliver Wendell Holmes, a lineal descendant of Jacob Wendell, one 
of the early proprietors of the territory now comprising the town, was 
for a long time a summer resident, and still keeps up his attachment for 
Pittsfield. Henry W. Longfellow was a frequent visitor at the summer 
home of his father-in-law, and Herman Melville resided for many years 
at "Arrowhead." 

For many years Pittsfield was the seat of the Berkshire Medical Col- 
lege, whose graduates are still among the foremost in the profession in 
different parts of the country. The late Dr. Josiah G. Holland was a 
student at this institution at one time. " Maplewood," originally a 



THE BOOK OF BERKSIIIRK. 105 

cantonment for troops during the war of 1812, had for a long time been 
known as a young hadies' school, with beautiful grounds, which property 
recently passed into the hands of Oberlin College, by request of Rev. C. 
V. Spear, and its managers will continue the school and at the same 
time have it conducted as a summer hotel. "Springside" was once 
a flourishing boys' school, and Miss Saulsbury"s young ladies' school is 
still in successful operation. As early as 1796 several libraries were 
founded, and in 1850 a young men's association was formed. Its library 
building, the Athen.-eum, is the gift of the late Thomas Allen, of St. 
Louis, who went out from Pittsfield a poor boy, carving his way to fame 
and fortune. Its shelves contain several thousand volumes of the best 
books, while the reference library is a fine one. Its benefits are abso- 
lutely free to all the people of the town, which appropriates liberally to 
its support until the bequest of about $60,000 by the late Phinelias Allen 
becomes available, which will then make it self-supporting. Its museum, 
reading room and art gallery are well worth a visit, and the ]irivilege of 
taking books is allowed to the summer visitors on the payment of a small 
guaranty fee. There are held the debating societies that wish to occupy 
its rooms; the ladies have their meetings there for their Wednesday 
Morning Club, of which Miss Anna L. Dawes, daughter of Senator 
Dawes, was the chief promoter, and before which association there have 
been lectures of a high order from time to time. The Berkshire Histori- 
cal and Scientific Society also holds its quarterly meetings there, and, in 
a word, it is the center of the educational interests of the town. 

Village Associations. 
Pittsfield from an early date has always been social, and many new 
associations abound. It is the boast of Pittsfield that it has more socie- 
ties, secret and for literary and other purposes than almost any other 
town of its size in the State. Nearly all the secret orders are repre- 
sented in Pittsfield, and one of its Masonic lodges dates back its origin 
to about 1705. The Monday Evening Club, an institution of the town, of 
which Thomas F. Pluukett was chief organizer, is composed of a limited 
membership of twenty-five prominent gentlemen in the town, who meet 
fortnightly during the winter months at the houses of the members, the 
host usually reading a paper, and a discussion following, afterwards 
coming the spread. Few towns of its size in the State have a similar 
organization as flourishing as this. The Business Men's Association, 
organized in 1881, has a membership of about 125 of the leading men of 
the town and vicinity, having an elegant suite of rooms in the Central 



106 THE BOOK OF BERKSIIIKE. 

Block fitted up for social purposes, whicli are resorted to by its members 
for the discussion of business or other matters, and pleasant games, 
without gambling. Its rooms are always open to gentlemen visiting or 
sojourning in the town. The Academy of Music has a large stage, and, 
such is the local appreciation of the best drama and music, that frequent 
entertainments are here given by the best theatrical companies. A great 
many improvements of this character have been made in the town within 
the past few years, and there is a growing pi-ide in making it attractive 
in all respects, both for its own citizens and others seeking a temporary 
resting place or summer home in Pittsfield. 

WiTHix THE "City Limits." 
The roads of the town embrace some of the finest drives in the county. 
The village's principal streets, North, South, East, and West, diverging 
from the Park, are wide, straight and lined with huge trees, mainly elms 
and maples, on each side. On North and South streets is a clear view 
from the High School building (the former location of the Medical Col- 
lege) to Maplewood, of nearly a mile; and in summer especially, so 
hiddeu are the buildings, that the eye seems to look through a long 
avenue of trees. Down East street is another broad view, for half a 
mile, with great trees each side, and back from the highway are beauti- 
ful and cozy residences, with well-kept lawns and yards. The town has 
expended for highways and bridges alone ia ten years nearly $(50,000, 
which does not include the care and maintenance of sidewalks. A stieet 
railway will be in operation this summer, extending from the railroad 
station to North street, up to Wahconah street, Bel Air, Pontoosuc, and 
to the lake of that name. 

Wheke Visitors Live. 
Among the many noted inns that the town has had, an old one, built 
in the last century, after being closed for years, was reopened in 1885 — 
the Homestead Inn, on East street. The Berkshire Life Insurance Com- 
pany's building stands on the " Berkshire Corner," which was the site 
of the famous old Berkshire Hotel, whose Federalist landlord, in 1808, 
refused to furnish a dinner for Democrats, who were compelled to make 
their repast in a neighboring orchard. Besides the Homestead, the town 
now has the American House, managed and owned by Major Quacken- 
bush, of the Stanwix Hall, Albany; the Burbank House, opposite the 
railway station. A popular boarding house for permanent or transient 
guests is that of Mrs. Viner, on South street; there is the attractive 



THE BOOK OF BEBKSniRE. lOT 

house of Mrs. Backus, further south on the same street, which was the 
resting place of Lieutenant Greely in the summer of 188-5; Maplewood 
Hall, with most attractive grounds and accessories, on North street, 
owned by Oberlin College; " Springside," further north, which was 
originally built for a boys' school by Prof. Richards, and which a few 
years ago was converted into a summer hotel, under the management of 
Joseph Tetley, has a most charming view of the village and surroundings. 

PAitK Square. 

The central part of the large village is the Park Square. Up to about 
1812, it was an open space, and the old elm, which for years was a vener- 
able relic, occupied a ijrominent place therein, and when it fell, in 1864, 
there was general regret as over the loss of an old friend. About 
1825, measures were taken to impi'ove the appearance of the plat, and in 
that year it was utilized in the ovation given to General Lafayette, who 
visited Pittsfield and was received with great pomp and hearty welcome. 
Within its first enclosure occurred the first cattle show in the country, 
in 1809, a simple display of a few animals; but it was the seed sown 
which has developed into the multitudes of such oi'ganizations. Pitts- 
field and " The Old Berkshire Agricultural Society" lay just claim to 
being the mother of the grand system of agricultural organizations in 
this country. The Park, which occupies a sightly location in Pittsfield, 
has a wai'm place in the estimation of the people, and within the last 
quarter of a century the town has materially enlarged and improved its 
appearance. The dedication of the handsome Soldiers' Monument, cost- 
ing $10,000, the "Color Sergeant," by Launt Thompson, which graces 
the western approach, called together the largest assemblage ever wit- 
nessed in the town, in September, 1872, the address being delivered by 
George William Curtis. In Park Square a tasty pagoda has been erected, 
and here weekly outdoor concerts are given during the summer evenings 
by the town bands. 

Through the effort of Miss Anna L. Dawes, the portion remaining of 
the old First street burial ground, which had been abandoned, the dead 
buried there being removed to the new cemetery, was saved from becom- 
ing building or manufacturing sites and dedicated to the children for 
a play ground. The town a few years ago began the work of its 
improvement, which is to be continued from year to year. It is but a 
short distance from the center of the village, and in summer the shouts 
of the merry children are heard, where they may gambol and frolic 
at will. 



108 



THE BOOK OF BEKKSHIRE. 




I.— Wonderful Birch Tree Near Lanesboro Line. 2.— Wahconah Falls, Windsor. 
3.— Pontoosuc Lake. 4.— Onota Lake. 



TilE BOOK OF BEKKSIIIKE. 109 

Beautiful Onota Lake. 
The lakes of Pittsfield are an important feature of its attractiveness, 
and every year the two princijial ones have become resorts either for a 
day's pleasure or for camping parties. Onota Lake, formerly called 
West Pond, is one of the largest, at the same time one of the most beauti- 
ful, sheets of water in the whole county. From various points along its 
shores some of the most beautiful views in the region are obtainable, 
especially from the southwestern, where in the days of the French and 
Indian wars, there were fortifications. In front of the beholder are the 
Washington Mountains ; to the northeast, as one stands facing the east,, 
are the hills of Windsor, many miles away; to the north, Greylock and 
the other peaks in the neighborhood are clearly seen, and still furthei" ta 
the east, the Green Mountain range above Adams; to the south is th& 
mountain defining the southern boundary of the basin in which Pittsfield 
is situated. A charming view is obtained from the field of Mr. Chapman, 
whose farm extends along the western border of the lake. The lake lies 
in a pretty upland basin, and contains, since its enlargement in 1864, 683 
acrf s. Prior to this enlargement it was practically two independent, 
lakes, the smaller one being formed by a dam or causeway, thrown 
across by the beavers. Its west shore was a wall of pebbles and 
boulders, thrown up by the action of the ice. Appletree Point, on the 
west shore, and about midway from north to south, is a favorite camp- 
ing ground. The lake is easy of access and can lie driven to from nearly 
every point. It is contemplated that a hotel will be erected at no distant 
day, and that pleasure steamers and yachts will be placed there for the 
convenience of those who resort thereto. A line of busses to it is pro- 
jected. It is best reached through Onota street and Lake avenue. 

PoNTOosuc Lake. 
Pontoosuc Lake, two miles north of the center, is the next largest in 
size and lies partly in Lanesboro. It was enlarged as a i-eservoir, in 
1867, so that its present area is 575 acres. The highway skirts its eastern 
shore, aud is one of the popular drives out of Pittsfield. At the lower 
end, in Pittsfield, are two lovely pine groves, where caraijing and picnic- 
ing parties find a day's outing most enjoyable. From this place the 
view to the north is delightful, taking in the hills farther on in Lanes- 
boro, with Greylock beyond, Constitution Hill and others, while to the 
west are the Taconics, two miles away, the reflection of whose peaks in 
a bright day is plainly seen on the bosom of the placid lake. Gunn's 
Grove, a point on the northwest shore, is also a delightful camping 



no THE BOOK OF BEEKSHIKE. 

ground. The south end Of the lake is the northern terminus of the pro- 
posed horse raih'oad, which will make access easier than formerly, and 
the lake is destined to become one of the favorite resorts of the town. 
Pleasuie craft will be added; a steamer was well patronized by excursions 
and picnicing parties a few years ago. Parties seek its shores even from 
a considerable distance for a day's picnicing. 

Otheb Lakes, 

Richmond Lake is practically a reservoir, in both Richmond and Pitts- 
field, and has been enlarged within a few years for the accommodation 
of the factories on Shaker Brook, which flows from it. It contains about 
250 acres, but it has not the attractions of the other lakes, and is there- 
fore not a place of resort. Silver Lake, in the east part of the village, 
contains about sixty acres, and with a little improvement might be con- 
verted into a pleasant resort for boating; a drive around its shores has 
been talked of. Sylvan Lake is about half the size of Silver Lake, but is 
not important. Morewood Lake, known to some as Melville Lake, and 
by others Lily Bowl, is in the south part of the town, near South Moun- 
tain, and covers about thirty-five acres. It is almost hidden from view 
in the trees along its banks, and its waters are fed largely from clear 
springs. It being to a great extent private property, it is not resorted to 
by the general public. It can be seen from the Housatonic Railroad 
trains. 

Streams are numerous and many of them picturesque, in different 
parts of the town. Some of them still afford passably good fishing, 
though of late years the supply has diminished. The town maintains a 
sportsmen's club, composed of prominent gentlemen of the village, and 
there is also a well sustained association of marksmen, who make 
visitors, having a taste in that direction, welcome to the use of their 
range just outside the limits of the center. 

The Cemetery, 
The principal cemetery of Pittsfield is the finest in Berkshire, and is a 
little more than a mile from the Park. It is a portion of a farm of 150 
acres, and is in the control of a corporation. It is picturesque in the 
extreme. Trees and wooded slopes dot the landscape, while from the 
higher grounds a beautiful view of the village is obtained. There are 
several pretty drives through the undulating gi'ounds, which are often 
resorted to by those who wish to spend a quiet hour. Thomas Allen of 
St. Louis, who dearly loved the home of his birth, bequeathed $5,000 for 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. Ill 

the erection of a suitable gateway, and his monument, a monolith, is 
probably as large a shaft, quarried from a single stone, as can be found 
in any other cemetery. The cemetery dedication, in 18.50, was in keeping 
with the spirit of the town. Everybody attended the ceremonies; there 
was a procession formed at the park which marched to the grounds in 
solemn order; an address was made; Oliver Wendell Holmes read a poem, 
for he was no stranger to Pittslield ; and there were original odes sung, 
composed by former residents of the town. There is a healthy pride, in 
tlie case of the cemetery, which grows every year in making it attractive 
to the visitor. 

Outdoor Sports. 

The Pleasure Park is about a mile east of the center of the village, and 
was organized by a number of the leading gentlemen of the town yeai's 
ago as a private course for driving, with a commodious house within the 
enclosure. Here are annually held several interesting races, and it has 
also been the scene of some spirited bicycle races. The grounds of the 
Berkshire Agricultural Society, two miles north of the village, have also 
a good track, and the annual "cattle show" is a feature of Pittsfield in 
September, which attracts large crowds during the three days' exhibition. 
From this elevated position, still another view of the town is obtained, 
different from all others. 

Pittsfield is also the headquarters of the Berkshire County Wheel- 
men's organization, nearly all of whose forty members are connected 
with the League, and they have an elegant suite of rooms fitted up in 
the England block, in the center of the village. Excursions during the 
season are of almost weekly occurrence, and there are some of the finest 
tours to be taken with Pittsfield as the center of the radius, in all 
the county. The young men connected with the organization are from 
among the best, and their rooms are open to their brethren whenever 
they are in the town. 

The Leading Residents. 

As before stated, Pittsfield early became the dwelling place of a most 
excellent class of citizens, who made the town the place of their abode 
for years, became identified with its good name and its interests, and 
many of the old homes still remain. As a rule they were large and 
roomy, and some of them, even in their dilapidation, give evidence of 
the hearty good cheer and hospitality that must have reigned within. 

From the Park east, as one strolls leisurely down the way, there is the 
country seat that belonged to Thomas Allen, a substantial stone structure. 



112 THE BOOK OF BEKKSIIIRE. 



with delightful grounds, and the family yet cherish its cozy surroundings. 
Just beyond is the Pomeroj' homestead, now the Homestead Inn, where 
for many years the most cordial hospitality was dispensed by Lemuel 
Pomeroy, and later by his son. Col. Robert Pomeroy. 

On Bartlett avenue, named in honor of the brave General William F. 
Bartlett, whose life was peacefully breathed out in Pittstield, are sev- 
eral beautiful specimens of cottage architecture. The Episcopal rectory 
is situated on Bartlett avenue. On the north side of East street, fronting 
Bartlett avenue, is the house of Senator Jones, formerly the home of Col. 
George S. Willis, a public spirited citizen and once the high sheriff of 
the countJ^ 

Farther along on East street are the homes of Cashier Warriner, the 
new cottage of Dr. W. F. Paddock, the place where W. B. Cooley, now 
dead, used to live, the home of Dr. J. M. Brewster, and the Mrs. Clapp 
homestead, in an inviting location. The old homestead of Dr. Brewster, 
the elder, is now the site of the handsome new house of W. R. Allen, of 
St. Louis, which is one of the most expensive, as well as one of the 
model, houses of the county. Beyond lives Jabez L. Peck, active in 
the upbuilding of the town, and near by was the home of N. G. Brown, 
when living. On the south side of the street, and somewhat back, is 
the Ensign H. Kellogg homestead, standing back from the street, with 
its shady lawn, its vine covered columns, a substantial brick house, one 
of the old landmarks of the town. 

Further east is the Thomas F. Plunkett house, now the home of Mrs. 
H. M. Plunkett. This was the home of Thomas Gold, who, tradition 
says, though the story has been exploded, sat in an upper chamber and 
witnessed his own funeral as the procession passed away to the ceme- 
tery. It was necessary, it was said, that, owing to some financial transac- 
tions, he should be dead, and, after the funeral was over, he made his 
escape to other lands. In this house the famous poem, " The Old Clock 
on the Stairs," by Longfellow, was written, and the clock remains to 
this day in the same hallway: 

" Through days of sorrow and of mirth, 
Through days of death and days of birth, 
Through every swift vicissitude 
Of diangeful time, unchanged it has stood, 
.A.nd as if, liTie God, it all things saw, 
It calmly repeats those words of awe : — 
' Forever — never ! 
Never — forever ! '" 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 113 

This house commands a fine view from the summit of a knoll. Mrs. 
Plunkett may claim the honor of being one of the pioneers in the organi- 
zation of the present sanitary system and the boards of health, urging the 
subject to her husband during his legislative terms until it finally became 
a law, and from Massachusetts the system has extended to other States. 
She IS the author of a widely circulated book, among other works, on 
" Sanitary Plumbing." The dwellings of James W. Hull, Dr. W. E. Ver- 
milye and Congressman F. W. Rockwell are on Appleton avenue, just 
south of East street. 

At the foot of East street are the homes of Mrs. W. M. Root and of 
W. G. Backus, while near by, on Elm street, is a plain, nearly square 
house, the residence of Senator Henry L. Dawes. He came to Pittsfield 
many years ago, and has been in hearty accord with all its improvements 
and watched its prosperity with great interest. His daughter. Miss Anna L. 
Dawes, president of the Wednesday Morning Club, is a lady of literary 
talent and accomplishments. Elm street, across the east branch of the 
Housatonic River, is a lovely walk or drive, and further on is the resi- 
dence of Mrs. William Pollock, at " Greytower," which is one of the 
most magnificent country seats in all Massachusetts. There are several 
shady roads and pleasant drives in this part of town, toward Lenox and 
Washington. On the middle road to Lenox, we come to the farm occu- 
pied by Col. Robert Pomeroy, which, as " Canoe Meadow," was occupied 
for some time by Oliver Wendell Holmes, whose grandfather in the ma- 
ternal line settled in this town in 1735. For the cattle show of 1849, he 
composed and read his poem, " The Ploughman." The country seat of 
John A. Kernochan is also on this delightful drive. A short distance 
south is the famous "Abbey Lodge," owned for several years by Col. 
Richard Lathers, of New York, and which from time to time was the 
place of entertainment of noted visitors to Berkshire. 

The Western Part of the Town. 
On Jubilee Hill, west of the railway station, still remains the Dr. Childs 
homestead, from which some fine views of the town may be obtained. 
On this hill the famous Berkshire jubilee was held. The houses of 
Cashier E. S. Francis, and " Prospect Villa," erected by S. V. R.Daniels, 
are prominent here. From this point the eye takes in new beauties not 
seen in any other part of the center, there being an unobstructed view for 
manv miles in all directions. The Governor George N. Briggs place lies to 
the westward. Turning north from here for a moment, through Onota 
stieet, there is a lovely drive; the village lying to the east, and Greylock 



114 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 

full in one's face. This road can be followed for two miles nearly to the 
■west entrance of the cemetery. In some respects West street is the 
handsomest drive in town. The Crook farm, owned at one time by Mr. 
Crook, the famous New York restauranteur, with its mammoth barn, 
occupies a fine and commanding site. Methodism had its first meeting 
house in this part of the town, although the first preaching was in the 
«ast part, where the eccentric Lorenzo Dow at one time preached. For 
nearly three miles West street is almost straight; in mmy places finely 
shaded, and a beautiful landscape greets the eye during its entire length 
to the eastern base of the Taconic Mountain in Hancock, and thence to 
Lebanon Springs, to which it is the direct highway. 

A little moi-e than a mile out is Onota Lake, on whose southeastern shore 
is the country seat of H. C. Valentine of New York. It has been exten- 
sively improved since its ownership by Mr. Valentine, whose grounds of 
meadow and lawn and wood are among the finest in Pittsfield. It was 
occupied for one season by Minister Thornton, of Great Britain. Mr. 
Valentine's extensive farm is a little southwest, overlooking a valley 
■which presents many attractions to the eye. District Attorney A. J. 
Waterman has also a farm as a country residence near by, and the neigh- 
l)oring F. A. Hand estate is attractive. Turning to the north, through 
Churchill street, the road is along a romantic drive for some miles 
through a farming section of the town, to the famous " North Woods" 
district. From the elevations along the route, many fine views of Lake 
Onota, and the hills east, and the range of which Greylock is always in 
the center, are obtained. A drive on through the "North Woods" dis- 
trict brings one in view of the Shaker Promised Land, or Holy Ground, 
in Hancock. 

South of West street there is a fine drive to Steai'nsville, with the South 
Mountain and Osceola Mountain beyond, and to the right the valley 
stretching on towards Richmond and West Stockbridge. On West street 
is the town's farm, where the poor and mild insane are well cared for, — 
an interesting place to visit for an hour. One of the attractions of the 
street is to drive a short distance farther, rising the hill into Hancock, 
■when the eye to the east, back over the way, to the north and the south, 
takes in a kaleidescope of natural beauty. 

Attractions on the North. 
Up North street is Maplewood, with its attractive grounds, opposite 
which is the home of T. A. Oman, which was occupied last year by 
ex-Senator David L. Yulee, of Florida. Senator Eustis, of Mississippi, 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 115 

has occupied a house, corner of Bradford and North streets. Near 
Maplewood is the fine Catholic church and grounds and the paroch- 
ial residence of Father Pui'cell, the veteran priest of the county. Going 
further north, we come to the House of Mercy, created and sustained by 
the ladies of Pittsfield, — the model cottage hospital of Massachusetts. 
A short way further is " Springside," before referred to, and on the sum- 
mit of the hill is the property of the Davols, who maintain this as the 
summer retreat for their families; a bewitching landscape is here pre- 
sented. The Learned farm is a short way beyond. 

On North street, near the House of Mercy, is Wahconah street, leading 
to the main entrance of the cemetery. This road can be continued past 
the village of Bel Air, past the grounds of the Agricultural Society to 
Taconic, and again to Pontoosuc. At Bel Air a fine drive can be taken to 
the west, past Russell's and Peck's mills, bearing a little north on the 
Hancock road, over Potter Mountain, in that town. It is a popular drive, 
through a quiet portion of Pittsfield, and the scenery, while not so grand, 
is still very attractive. The road to Potter Mountain is taken by bearing 
again to the west ; directly ahead is the road to the famous Balanced Rock, 
in Lanesboro ; or the drive may be continued, after pausing a while to view 
this wonderful freak of Nature, past the Hurlbut fai'm, and crossing the 
north end of Pontoosuc Lake, taking the road again from Lanesboro to 
Pittsfield, on the east shore of the lake, and making a very pleasant half 
day's excursion. 

In the northeast part of the village, on Burbank street, is the Judge B. 
R. Curtis place, which, half a century or so ago, was one of the finest 
country seats in the town. Judge Curtis, who was a judge of the 
United States Supreme Court, made Pittsfield his summer residence for 
some time. From this house is obtained a lovely view to the south, east 
and west, which in some respects has but few, if any, equals in Pittsfield. 
From the higher ground back of this property the valley below and on 
to the north is a perfect panorama of loveliness and the locality is easily 
reached as a drive. Further east is the " Maplehurst" farm of Mrs. 
Thomas Allen, where there is probably one of the finest as well as the 
most expensive herds of Jerseys in all Bei'kshire. On the north end of 
this farm are also some very fine views, especially looking to the north, 
with Greylock in the foreground. 

Near the Coltsville Junction is the farm of W. Russell Allen, where he 
has a fine herd of Percheron horses, which he breeds. At Coltsville is 
the famous government mill owned by the Cranes, where the distinctive 
paper used by the government for the printing of bank bills, the postal 



116 THE BOOK OF BEKKSHIKE. 

note paper, and bond paper for numerous governments, are manufac- 
tured. The Unkamet Brook, flowing near the Pittsfield & North Adams 
raih'oad and into the Housatonic, has its source up in the meadows and 
the swamp in the northeast jjortion of the town, within a few feet of the 
source of the little brook feeding the stream flowing north towards 
Cheshire and into the Hoosac River. Thus the common fountains of two 
rivers are so close that it often depends upon chance which of the drops 
bubbling up side by side in the springs at the common source shall flow 
into Unkamet Brook and thence to the Housatonic and reach the sea 
down in Long Island Sound, or to the other, thus swelling the source of 
the Iloosac River, flowing north, thence to the Hudson River and the sea 
in that manner. So slight is the slope of the valley bottom, according to 
the surveys, that a dam raised four feet above the level of the highway 
at Coltsville would turn Unkamet Brook and the waters of the branch of 
the Housatonic coming in from Dalton northward into the Hoosac and 
thence to the Hudson. 

To the west from Coltsville station is the handsome villa and farm of W. 
F. Milton, a New York merchant, in ti-ade with China for some years, who 
came to Bei'kshire and Pittsfield, first as a summer visitor. His house 
is a model of architecture and each of its rooms is fitted up with dif- 
ferent woods. He has probably the finest collection of bric-a-brac in 
Chinese curios, and also in fine bronzes, in Berkshire. Mr. Milton's 
view of the valley is peculiar and indescribable. North of his place on 
the hills east of Lanesboro, the drive has many attractive features and 
fine views. Next west of Mr. Milton's is the farm of Zenas Crane, Jr., 
with its fine herd of Guernsey cattle and notable barn. Another pano- 
rama is here opened out, and away to the east and the north, on beyond 
Greylock, even, the eye wanders seeing new beauties at every turn. The 
admiier of fine cattle with choice pedigrees, and of a well kept and well 
tilled farm will find pleasure in viewing Mr. Crane's posses'-ions in thi.s 
line. If desired, turning from this place, a fine drive is had, past the 
house of Oren Benedict, on the highway which has its junction with the 
Dalton road. Going farther west from Mr. Crane's farm, rising a little 
higher, are some other good views, especially to the west and of tlie Tacon- 
ics, with Greylock still at the north, and this highway has its junction with, 
that running north from the center to Pontoosuc. The drive from the 
center, east past the Curtis place to the junction, then to Coltsville^ 
thence west and p^ist the dwellings of Messrs. Milton and Crane, to Ta- 
conic and then south past the Davol country seat, is, to the minds of 
some, one of the finest in the town. 



THE BOOK OF BEKKSHIRE. 117 

Ix The Southwest. 

In the direction of Barkerville and Stearnsville, beyond the west branch 
of the Housatonic, is the house of Mrs. Pomeroy, built a few years ago. 
Beyond the raih-oad is a cozy ])]ace, for some time known as the " Kel- 
logg place," which has been occupied as a country residence in summer 
by some city gentlemen. Up the hill and to the right of the highway, 
is the famous Captain Britton property, where the house for many years 
has been styled "haunted." Captain Britton, a retired sea capt lin, 
built it some years ago, and during his residence there it was often the 
scene of gaiety and mirth. 

Keeping directly south from the Shaker Brook, the road runs on the 
high ground and is a line d ive, with the Taconics to the west, and on 
the left the Lenox range. South Mountain and Mount Osceola to the left 
and south. If this highway is followed, not turning we'^t when above 
Barkerville, a pleasant trip is made on towards West Stockbridge or 
Richmond. Another drive from this highway a little south of the point 
of divergence with the other Barkerville road, is to turn east, following 
the highway known as South Mountain street, which joins the Lenox 
road near the Morewood property. 

Barkerville is the birth place of Judge James M. Barker, of the Sui)e- 
rior Court. A mile west are the Hancock Shakers, quite as often known 
ns the Pittsfield Shakers. This community is partly in both towns of 
Hancock and Pittsfield, and is among the oldest of the sect of the conn- 
try. They have four families, with all the auxiliaries of a typical Shaker 
community, though their church is not opened to the public as at Lob- 
anon, a few miles farther beyond, over the mountain, and to which this 
is the pi'incipal highway. The Hancock or Pittsfield Shakers own sev- 
eral square miles in the two towns in Massachusetts and in Lebanon 
over the line in New York, and have been here for more than a centuiy. 
Their community is a pleasant place to visit, and they entertain callers 
simply, but agreeably. 

Dowx South Street. 
Down South street, elegant in shade and quietude, is the Martin prop- 
erty, one of the oldest houses in the town. Further south is the house 
<tf Thomas F. Pingree, the homestead owned by Ezekiel R. Colt, when 
living. The houses of S. W. Bowerman, the brothers West — Joha 
C. and Gilbert — the homestead of Daniel Stearns, a manufacturer in 
the past, and of F. W. Hinsdale, are situated on this street. Down 
the hill is the residence of J. N. Dunliam, president of the Springfield 



118 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 

Fire and Marine Insurance Company. The road crosses the Housatonic 
at this point, and in the deep pool by the bridge occurred tlie romantic 
suicide of a young lady student at Maplewood, wliose rashness was the 
result of disappointed love and at the time made a sensation in all the 
region. It is often referred to yet, and was the foundation of a ro- 
mantic novel. 

Half a mile farther on, we come to " Broadhall," the Morewood prop- 
erty, and known by many as the Melville place. It has a history full of 
interest, and it is but little changed since it was erected, in 1781, by 
Henry Van Schaack. At sundry times it has been used as a boarding 
house, and among its guests have been Longfellow, Hawthorne, Herman 
Melville, President Tyler, and many others of note. A few years ago it 
was the summer home of Count and Countess Llewenhaupt, the Danish 
minister, and many foreign notables were their occasional guests. To 
the southeast is the Melville estate, named "Arrowhead," from the 
Indian relics found near by. Some of the best writings of Herman Mel- 
ville were written here, among them being " Moby Dick," the "Piazza 
Tales," " My Chimney and I," and " October Mountain," the name be- 
ing taken from a neighboring mountain of that name. Beyond the More- 
wood estate the road passes under the shadow of South Mounta-n, known 
as Snake Hill from its tortuous windings, and from the summit one looks 
down into the village of Pittsfield with delight. A striking view of Grey- 
lock to the north, the hills to the east and west as far as the eye can 
reach, makes a pleasing picture. 

On East Housatonic street are the homes of Judge Barker, ex-Lieuten- 
ant Governor and Judge Joseph Tucker and his brother, George H. 
Tucker (the treasurer of the county), Henry W. Taft (the clerk of the 
courts), and the homestead of Henry W. Dwight, superintendent of 
the American Express Company. In the Dwight homestead, when occu- 
pied by the Kev. William Wilberforce Newton as an Episcopal rectory, 
was the birthplace of the " Congress of Churches," an idea which has 
crystallized into a grand, progressive plan of church unity. Mr. New- 
ton's charming sketch, "The Priest and the Man," was finished 
here. On the corner of East Housatonic and Gold avenue is where 
Judge James D. Colt lived, and across the avenue lives John L. 
Colby, the wealthy owner of the Lanesboro Iron Works; farther on 
is the dwelling of Trensurer Adam, of the savings bank. On Wendell 
avenue, at "Wendell Hall," was the home of the late General W. F. 
Bartlett; here are the homes of Col. Walter Cutting, James H. Hinsdale, 
and also the Joslyn estate, whose owner was interested in I'otels in Bos- 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIEE. 119 

ton and New York — the Buckingham and others — for many years ; the 
homes of Thaddeus Clapp, O. W. Eobbins, Frank Russell, D. M. Col- 
lins and Dr. J. F. A. Adams are on the same street. We now come to 
"Elmwood," the country seat of Edward Learned when living, and one 
of the finest in the State. Its great elms make the name appropriate. It 
occupies a prominent situation in the village, and its handsome grounds 
are highly attractive. It is stated that the original owner was a baker, 
who had accumulated a fortune and removed to Pittsfield to establish a 
home. His vocation followed him, and he was so continually annoyed 
by the exclamation of " Crackers " and other epithets pertaining to his 
trade that he sold his property to Mr. Learned and quit the town forever. 

Delightful Homes. 
In cottage architecture especially, in taste so far as regards homes of 
moderate price, Pittsfield has taken a long stride within the past di'cade. 
The locality in the vicinity east of Maplewood avenue is building up 
rapidly with houses of this character, the names of whose owners would 
fill a long list. It shows an improved taste in the citizenship of the town, 
and the old-fashioned, unattractive homes of the past are fast disap- 
pearing, or, at least, are not duplicated in the present generation. The 
most costly house is that of W. R. Allen, of St. Louis. The Milton house, 
near Coltsville, has also many special attractions, and the cottages of 
Theodore Harold, on South street, are also models in their way. The 
Valentine places, on West street, have been remodeled, and, together 
with their surroundings, especially the Allen place on the south shore of 
Onota, are decidedly attractive and pleasing. Congressman Rockwell's 
new cottnge on Appleton avenue, the dwelling of Dr. W. E. Vermilye, a 
representative of the New York family of that name, and the home of 
James W. Hull, are all on the same avenue, each attractive and cozy. The 
homes of Pittsfield are peculiar in their coziness and their air of comfort, 
rather than brilliant in many colors or adorned with angles and an at- 
tempt at overdrawn architecture. The attractions of the town are in its 
natural beauty rather than its grand houses; and so, while its homes and 
its I ;tages have few striking features, ample and well-kept lawns are 
everywhere; shade, invitmg rest and comfort, is on every hand; the 
wide streets have an air of quiet and attractive peacefulness, and 
the walks are broad and well kept. There is a great deal of wealth 
in the town, which is liberally drawn upon for the beautifying of Pitts- 
field or the furtherance of its industries and substantial prosperity, and 
the village has a most thriving appearance in consequence. 



120 tue book of berkshire. 

Xames That Are Widely Known. 

Gordon McKay, the inventor of the sewincj machine bearing his name, 
was for many years a resilient of the town. Elias Merwin, tlie Boston 
merchant and banker, was a citizen of Pittsfield, and always loved its at- 
tractions; tlie Kev. John E. Todd, the well-known New Haven divine, 
was a Pittsfield boy; Jacob L. Greene and John M. Taylor, both success- 
ful insurance men in Hartford, received much of their early business 
training in Pittsfield; Prof. C. E. West, of Brooklyn, one of the most 
successful educators of the day, was a farmer's boy here. General H. S. 
Briggs, one of the most efficient men in the customs service, is still a 
resident of Pittsfield; the Rev. O. P. Gifford, the eloquent pastor of the 
Warren Avenue Baptist church, Boston, and the Rev. Wayland Hoyt, of 
Brooklyn, had in the Pittsfield Baptist church tlieir first pastorates; the 
Kev. Dr. John Todd, famous as a writer and a preacher, left a lasting 
impression for good on the town, which he did so much to make an ideal 
New England village; Rev. Dr. Harris, afterward president of a Maine 
theological school, and a vigorous writer, was once pastor of the First 
church; William Miller, the father of Millerism, or the Second Advent, 
was a native of Pittsfield. Vice-President Hendricks was a guest in 
Pittsfield in the summer of 1885 for a sliort time; Dr. J. Marion Sims 
spent the last months of his busy life in this town, and would have made 
it his summer home, especially on account of its mountain water. 
His autobiography was written in the Oman house on North street. 
The English, French, Danish, Spanish and Portugese ministers have all 
been temporary residents. Baron Struve, of Russia, spent a season here in 
a house that he hired, in 1883. Each year more and more houses in town 
are rented to city families, whose desire is to escape the exactions of 
"society," and yet who do not want to abandon the solid comforts 
of civilization. For such people, and for all others who would enjoy 
a combination of city and country life, almost impossible to obtain 
elsewhere, and certainly not obtainable in the pleasurable degree found 
in Pittsfield, this town offer.-; the choicest inducements. 

Henry L. Dawes, long a resident of Pittsfield, was for eighteen years a 
mem tier of the National House of Representatives, for years a leading 
member and the chairman of the Ways and Means committee, and since 
1876, a representative of the Commonwealth in the Senate. Thomas 
Allen, a most distinguished native of Pittsfield, who died in 1882, came 
into prominence in 1830, in Van Buren's election; in 1837 he started the 
"Madisonian" in New York, a pajjer that had much infiuence, and was 
shortly after made public printer. Moving to St. Louis, in 1842, he tocik 



I 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 



121 




I.— Berkshire County Court House, Park Square, Pittsfield. 2 and 4.— Dalton Flow- 
ing Artesian Wells. 3.— Lenox Club House. 3.— Crane Library, Daltcn. 



122 THE BOOK OF UERKSUIKE. 

a leading place in affairs, was chief promoter of the Pacific railroad, and 
was president of the first company that began its construction. He 
bought the unfinished Iron Mountain railroad and finished it, and was 
one of the prominent men of the country. James M. Beebe, a noted 
Boston merchant, a member of the firm that was the predecessor of 
Jordan, Marsh & Co., was a Pittsfield boy. Prof. George E. Day, for- 
merly of the Lane Theological Seminary and now of the Yale Divinity 
School, was a native of this town. The Rev. William Allen, another na- 
tive, was a professor in Dartmouth College and president of Bowdoin 
College, and the author of several literary works, among them being the 
first biographical dictionary published in America. John W. Hulbert, a- 
native of Alford, but a resident of Pittsfield, was called the " Hamilton 
of Massachusetts." Numerous natives of this town have held high 
places in political, business and professional life, but mention of tlie 
noted men of the town, present and past, is already becoming tiresome. 

Encircled by Ixterestixg Places. 
Pittsfield, with all its attractions, is surrounded by numerous others of 
a varied nature in adjoining towns. The delightful drives are omni- 
present, and a few of them are mentioned elsewhere in this volunie. 
South, are the beauties of Lenox and Stockbridge, six to twelve miles 
distant. Southwest, Perry's Peak in Richmond, eight miles. West,. 
Lebanon and the Shakers, seven miles. Northwest, Potter Mountain,, 
between Ijanesboro and Hancock, nine miles; Lulu Cascade, four miles; 
Berry Pond, in Hancock, five miles. North, Balanced Rock, six 
miles, and several sightly hills in Lanesboro; the glassworks in Berk- 
shire Village, six miles. To the east and northeast, in Dalton, are 
the Wild Wizard's Glen, four miles; Mount Weston, eight miles, and the 
fine paper mills; in Windsor are Wahconah Falls, eight miles. On the 
southeast are Lake Ashley, and the magnificent outlooks from Washing- 
ton Mountain, about seven miles, one of them being from October 
Mountain; and Tory Glen, on the west slope of the mountain, five 
miles. With all these neighboring objects of interest added to its own„ 
Pittsfield is a most delightful place for summer and autumn sojourn. 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 



]2J 




^WILIvIAMSTO^WIV. 




£» ILLIAMSTOWX is named in honor of Col. 
Ephraim Williams, who fell in the battle 
of French Mountain, near Lake George, 
September 8, 1755. The college which 
bears his name and whose record is one 
that Berkshire is proud of, was founded 
by him. In area, this is a large town; its 
boundaries are mainly the "grand old 
bills of Berkshire" on all sides, and its 
sceneiy is fascinating. Standing in the 
village, which is on an elevated plateau, 
as it were, one looks in all directions and 
sees the peaks rising on every hand. 
In the village there is a sentiment char- 
acteristic of many of the Berkshire towns 
and yet peculiarly strong in Williamstown, of great admiration and 
love for the old college town. The students when they return to re- 
unions and "commencements," somehow seem to come no more to 
shake hands and recount the pranks of their college days than to see 
the old campus, and gaze again upon the hills, on every hand, changing 
with every month of the year, and get another breath of the pure air 
of the beloved town. 

Green River, aptly named, and a stream of some proportions, formed 
by the junction of the Hancock Kiver, the New Ashford Brook, the 
stream from the "Hopper," and some smaller ones, forms a north and 
south valley, which stands at right angles to the Hoosac, at the north 
end. The central parts are valleys made by the Green River running 
north to the Hoosac, of which it is the principal tributary, and the town 
is again cut by the Hoosac, which runs west. In this compound valley 
is situated Williamstown village, where the valley is quite extensive. 
It is surrounded on every side by mountains. On the west are the 
Taconics, a grand range at this point, with many prominent peaks. On 
the east is Saddle Mountain, a part of the Green Mountain range. At a 



THE BOOK OF BEKKf^UIIIE. 12-5 

point where the Hoosac River falls out of Massachusetts into Vermont the 
ground is about 100 feet lower than any other land in Berkshire, the next 
lowest being where the Housatonic leaves the State below Ashley Falls. 
Every stream in Williamstown finds its way into the Hoosac, and there is 
but one water way to the ocean ; in many of the other towns there being two. 
The old Mohawk trail between the Hudson and the Deerfield Eiveis, the 
latter east of Florida Mountain, passed along on the north bank of the 
Hoosac from the place where Braytonville, (a manufacturing village on 
the Xorth Adams road to Williamstown) stands, to the New Yoikline. 
What is a fact and only recently discovered, is that the present highway 
from Braytonville along the north bank is almost exactly, if not quite, 
on this same Indian trail. It is not close to the river, for the Indians did 
not like wet ground, but only a few rods distant. Along this trail the 
Mohawks passed in 1662 to their great battle with the Deerfield Indians 
in the Connecticut Valley. The highway varies but a few rods from this 
trail. When Fort Massachusetts, only a little beyond the Williamstown 
line, and now in North Adams and referred to elsewhere in this book, 
was captured, the captives, who were marched to Canada, were taken 
over this route, which Chaplain Norton calls the "Hoosac road," through 
Williamstown, down by the "Dugway" in Pownal, and thence through 
the State of New York. This region of Berkshire is historic ground as 
well as classical, but we can barely mention the fact in passing. 

The Mountains. 
In the mountain chains or ranges on nearly every side, with the high 
ground near the college buildings as a center, are peaks or prominent 
points, and these have names, most of them of local interest. To the east, 
the furthest to the left, as one stands near the chapel of the college or 
the Mansion House, is Mount Hazen, for the first surveyor who ran the 
lines in 1741 ; the next south is Hudson's Height, so named for Captain 
Seth Hudson, the last commander of Fort Massachusetts and the last 
surviver of the original settlers. The next is Mount Emmons, 2,276 
feet high, where a copper bolt was placed in the early survey; the next 
is Smedley Height, so named from one of the old settlers in the valley 
and still owned by one of the descendants. Still looking east and 
farther south as the range swings around southerly, is the Saddle Range. 
Saddle Mountain, as it appears from the distance, is practically in three 
lobes, there being Raven Rock with the road to Greylock in the valley 
between that and the Greylock lobe, which is the highest, and Mount 
Prospect which is the western lobe, cut off to near the middle by the 



126 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 



streams issuing from Greylock, making " The Hopper, " so-called. The 
north end of the central lobe, and in plain view from every i^art of the 
village, is Mount Williams, so named in honor of the founder of the col- 
lege. The next i^eak to the south on this central lobe, is Mount Fitch, 
commemorative of the iirst President of Williams College. The next is 
Greylock itself, seen from every part of Berkshire and 3,535 feet above 
sea level. Greylock, whose summit is in Adams, is more particularly re- 
ferred to in the article on that town. The next on the south is Mount 
Moore, commemorative of the second President of the college, and the 
southernmost of the central group is Mount Griffin, for the third Presi- 
dent of Williams College. Then on the western lobe is its highest peak, 
which is Mount Simouds, commemorative of Colonel Simonds, which over- 
looks the "Hopper." The next in order south of the " Hopper" is Bald 
Mountain, sometimes called the "Bluffs," 2,597 feet high, and the south- 
-ern end of that lobe is Mount Chadbourne, so named in memory of Paul 
A. Chadbourne, one of the deceased Presidents of the college. 

On the west are the Taconics, which give the name to the new 
age of geology, known as the " Taconic system," of Professor Emnions. 
The northern end so far as it relates to Williamstown, at the point where 
Hazen's line crosses the Taconics, was named by him Mount Belcher, 
commemorative of the then Governor of Massachusetts and New Hamp- 
shire, who had commissioned him to make the survey. The fine swell 
to the south of Mount Belcher (we are now on the west range or the 
Taconics) is called Leet Hill, from an interesting old character of 100 
years ago in town. The pointed peak to the south of Leet Hill is 
Dodd's Cone, so named for Professor Dodd, of Williams College, professor 
of mathematics for many years. The highest point in the Taconics in 
Williamstown — twin jjeaks — were long ago named Mount Hopkins, 2,790 
feet high, taking the family name of President Mark Hopkins and his 
brother Albert, who was for many years a professor in the college. Both 
are names that are prominent in Williamstown and are revered in the 
history of the college. The next swell is McMaster Mountain, so named 
from an old family of that part of the town. The next point, hardly 
visible from the village, but nearly west of the cozy village of South 
Williamstown, is Mount Mills, so named for Captain Samuel Mills. The 
last is Sabin Heights, so named in memory of Lieut. Zebediah Sabin, one 
of the minute men in the Revolution, who lost his life in the Expedition 
with Arnold up the Kennebec to Quebec in the winter of 1775-76. It is 
unnecessary to state that most of these points are accessible, some of 
them can be driven to and their summits are placed where grand views 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 



127 




128 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 

can be obtained. From the village in all directions are many fine views of 
the valley and there is a panor .ma of rare loveliness laid out before the 
beholder. 

There are four passes over the Taconics into the State of Nevr York. 
The northern is called Petersburg Pass, 2,075 feet high; next to that is 
Berlin Pass, 2,192 feet high, which was a turnpike in the early part of the 
century; both are passable and afford fine drives and magnificent views. 
The third is Kidder Pass, which is fine for horseback riding, and the 
southernmost is the Johnson Pass, so named from David Johnson who 
lived at its foot, and who also went up the Kennebec with Arnold. 

Village Perfection. 
The village itself is a gem, a college town with many buildings, college 
and society houses, some of them of unique architecture. The college 
buildings are well worth a visit, and the chapel, with its ivy for each of the 
classes for many years back, is suggestive of a great many recollections 
dear to the alumni. The main street of Williamstown is sixteen rods wide 
and beautifully laid out, running over the hill and through the depression 
of the valley. The dwellings on each side suggest quiet and comfort. Be- 
sides the main street, on which most of the college buildings are loc;ited, 
there are several lateral streets, all of them finely shaded and with hand- 
some dwellings. The Fields, David Dudley, Cyrus W., and the Rev. Dr. 
Henry M., all, or nearly all, of whom are alumni of the college, have been 
actively interested in the village as well as in the college itself. There is 
a thriving village improvement society, and the citizens take great pride 
in their village. It has been greatly improved and beautified, through the 
liberality of Cyrus W. Field, who gave >;10,000 for this purpose, with the 
condition that the street fences be removed. This was done, and conse- 
quently the village seems like a large park, .characterized by perfect 
neatness and rare beauty. Tli^ direction of 'the work was in the hands of 
Frederick Law Olmstead, the noted landscape gardner. Well kept lawns 
extend the wliole distance of Main street, planted here and there with 
shrubs and shaded with gracefully spreading trees. The street passes 
over three small hills, on which the college buildings stand, offering Mr. 
Olmstead unusual opportunities, which he has not failed to use, in pro- 
ducing charming effects. It is credited to President Barnum, of the 
Housatonic Railroad, as saying that if his road were extended from Pitts- 
field to Williamstown, he could make it rival Lenox as a summer home 
for city residents. There are scores of fine slopes and pleasant sites, 
which in time will be occupied. 



the book of berkshike. 129 

Mission Park. 
Here is the birth place of the American Board of Foreign Missions. In 
1806, and even before, the students of the college had been wont to seek 
some quiet retreat where they might pray, and there are still the remains 
of a large willow, near the dwelling of Prof. A. L. Perry, where they 
gathered under its secluded branches; down by the river is another 
place, but on one occasion they met in a small grove, and, a thunder 
shower coming up, they fled to a haystack, under the shelving sides of 
which they gathered and held their meeting; and there the first mission- 
ary work began. We give a view, in the initial letter of this article, of 
the monument erected on Missionary Park, to commemorate the event, 
by Harvey Rice, of Cleveland, Ohio. 

Many Choice Drives. 

Thei-e are many fine drives about Williamstown. Like nearly all the 
other valley towns of Berkshire, there are three drives through it, one 
each side under the mountain and another through the center. The 
drive to Xorth Adams is a pleasant six miles trip, one route being south 
from the village through the pretty village of Blackinton, and the other 
past the Greylock Mills. To Pownal, five miles, is a jiretty drive along 
the river. To Hancock, through South Williamstown, is delightful. 
Over the mountain, through the passes mentioned, there are fine views. 
There is not a more romantic road in all Berkshire than from Williams- 
town to Pittsfield via Xew Ashford, Lanesboro and back via Cheshire, 
Adams and North Adams. Two popular drives in the village are known 
as either the " Long Oblong," or the "Short Oblong." A drive takes 
the west road from the Mansion House, following the Taconics 
up Hemlock Brook, then turning near the school house to the 
main road from Hancock north through South Williamstown, and back 
by the river road to the village again at its east end. The road to 
Greylock is also a fine drive, striking the new road to Greylock Park by 
an easy grade, making a distance of about fifteen miles. The drive to 
Bemiington, Vt., sixteen miles, is also a delightful one over the hills, 
and has many nice bits of scenery on the way. The attractions in the 
neighboring towns are numerous, and extended reference to them will 
be found in the articles on those towns. 

Xear the railway station, on a very commanding height, John M. Cole 

has fitted up Cole's Grove for j^icnicing and excursion grounds at great 

exiDcnse, and has made a very attractive spot. There are roads and walks, 

paths and arbors, and a large dining hall capable of accommodating a 

9 



180 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRK. 



laiiio pnity. a daiu-iii!;- i^avillion. facilities for oookiiiii" and all tlio acocs- 
sorios of a losort of this kind. It is only a few rods from the station 
and in summer is visited by many excursionists. 

A Valley OrvLOOK. 
In the east part of the town, two miles from the village, aic the 
Sand Sprinirs with a temperature which is uniformly 72 dejjrees, and 
the water beinij a cure for many skin diseases. Here was k>cated 
Grcylock llall, which was burned J[ay 14th. 1S80. A most de- 
li<;htful view is obtained from the piazzas of this excellent hotel. 
The buildinj; stands on an elevated place near the northern rim of Wil- 
liamstowu basin and with a southern frontage of U).") feet, and its win- 
dows and broad verandas command a prospect seldom equaled. The 
Kev. Washingtou Gladden, referring to it in a private letter, says: " In 
the sublimity which belongs to magnitudes and distances, — which arises 
a,t the sight of mere bulk, or the signs of mere force, — the White Hills or 
the Yosemite Valley are. of course, far richer than this region; but the 
beauty that attracts and charn\s the eye, the calnmess that gives rest to 
the distracted sense, the peace that at once restores and satisfies tlie 
soul, have taken up their abode among your Berkshire Hills. Such a 
sight as that upon which you look from your windows, is good medicine 
for any tired citizen. The Hoosac Mountains, far otY to the left; the 
(ircyloek group, with Williams and Prospect in the foreground: and Bald 
Mountain, sitting like a lion couchant, looking down into the Hopper; 
the ribbed and butticssed Taconics, ranging thcnjsclves along the west- 
ern horizon; and the Dome, looming up in the north; while Williams- 
town, with its colleges, sits on its three hills in the center of the scone. 
The picture is as vivid as if I had seen it but yesterday." 

Williams Colleoe. 

The college has its gr.aduates by the liundreds, and they till all the sta- 
tions in life. It was to attend the commencement of his alma mater that 
President Garlicld had started when struck down by the assassin, Wil- 
liams College was proud of her son, and he loved her as fervently as she 
w as his pride. The list of her graduates would till a volume, and the 
history of the town and the college forms an interesting chapter in this 
part of the State and the county. 

The college began as a free school, endowed by Col. Ephraim Williams: 
and with S;),r>eX\ raised by lottery, and S2.000 by subscription, a building 
was ei-ectcd, now West College, and in ITlU the school was opened, to be 



TlIK JJOOK OF liKKKSUIBE. 131 

incorporated less tlian two years later, as a oolleffc. The proceeds of 
two townships in Maine, $10,0(X), granted by the JiCgislature and $2,fXXJ 
more, were applied in 1798 to build the old East Collcf^e, which was 
burned in 1H41. The present East and Soutli Collej^es, built in 1842, 
occuj)y in part the same giound. firilifin Hall, standin^f on the eastern 
eminence, neai'ly oppr)Kite East Collcfje, was built in 1828 for $10,000, 
raised by I'residcnt Uriflin. Colle^^e Chapel and Alumni Hall, on the 
west blow of East C'ollef^o grounds was built in IKoJj. Clark Hall w;i,s the 
gift of Edward Clark of New Yoik in 1881, and is situated on the emi- 
nence east of East College; it is a line building and was to furnish a safe 
place for the Wilder mineralogical cabinet and tin; colUige aichives. 
Near the South College is the Astronomical Observatory, the first 
erected m this country for this exclusive use, in 18.'J(i, by I'rof. Albert 
Hopkins. To the east rjf this is the Magnetic Observatory; Lawrence 
Hall was built in 1H40 through the liberality of Amos Lawrence of Boston. 
It is near East College, and contains the college library of 22,WX) 
volumes, with room for .35,000. The library is constantly increasing un- 
der the .*>18,000 endowment of the Lawrence and other funds. Kellogg 
Hall, south of West College, built in 1847, takes its name from Prof. 
Ebenezer Kellogg, who was long the Professor of Ancient J>anguages. 
Jackson Hall was built foi' the Natural IHstory .Society by Nathan .Jack- 
son, of New York. 

.John Z. Coodrich, of Stockbridge, gave Goodrich Hall, in 1870. It is 
on the north side of Main street, west of Orififin Hall. The Field Memo- 
rial Observatory, situated on high ground, southwest of the princip d 
college buildings, and intended to supplement the old Astronomical Ob- 
servatory, was the gift of JJavid Dudley F'leld, in 1881. Mr. Field has 
been a liberal benefactor of the college, and was the principal donor of 
the Soldiers' Monument, erected in 1807. Morgan Hall, the most valu- 
able of the college buildings, situated east of West College, was erected 
tmt of a principal part of a gift of §100,000, from Governor E. D. Mor- 
gan. The elegant gymnasium, built in 188;"j, is on the south side of Main 
street, east of Morgan Hall. Massachusetts has given to the college, 
besides the townships mentioned, two others in 1819; $4,000 at incorpora- 
tion in 170;5; $.'},000 annually foi- ten years, beginning with 1814, and $2o,- 
000 annually for three years, beginning with 1808, provided that a like 
sum should be raised by subscription, which was done, mainly by the 
elforts of President Hopkins. Very few college towns have so fine and 
so many secret society buildings. There are five here, most of them 
costly, two representing an inv(;stment of not less than $.!iO,000 each. 



132 THE BOOK OF BEKKSIIISE. 

- ^ ■■ ■ — 

The presidents of the college have been : The Kev, Dr. Ebenezer 
Fitch, 1793-1815; the Rev. Dr. Zephaniah Swift Moore, 1815-1821; the Rev. 
Edward Dorr Griffin, 1821-1836; the Rev. Dr. Mark Hopkins, 1836-1872; 
the Rev. Dr. Paul A. Chadbourne, 1872-1881 ; Dr. Franklin Carter, since 
1881. The most noted professor that the college has ever had is Prof. 
A. L. Perry, one of the distinguised free trade advocates of the United 
States, and a leading member of the Berkshire Historical and Scientific 
Association. 

For many years Williamstown has been a summer resort of high 
quality. The Mansion House is in the village, on a commanding emi- 
nence and accommodates 150 guests; the Kellogg House is also in the 
village, with old-fashioned Are places and other accessories of that kind, 
and accommodates seventy-tive guests. Over at Greylock Hall, two miles 
from the village, 200 guests were easily accommodated. All these have 
had high rank among the summer hotels, being well managed with excel- 
lent accommodations. There are also several private boarding houses. 
Within a year or two there has been started a nucleus of summer 
homes, which are situated on a lovely slope. JSIr. Doughty, of Troy, 
has built a fine country seat; the Rev. Harry Hopkins, of Kansas 
City, son of Rev. Dr. Mark Hopkins, has built a nice summer cottage 
there; Col. Archie Hopkins, of the Court of Claims at Washington, has 
a summer cottage in the neighborhood; President Leake, of the bank, 
has a delightful home near by; Mr. Harrison, of Milwaukee, has estab- 
lished a summer home, and Mr. Markham, of Xew York, has a 
country seat and farm here. There are also several houses, where the 
faculty and other residents of the town reside, which are tasteful. WiP- 
liamstown has its share of prominent guests. Hardly a commencement 
passes that does not bring back for a time many of its alumni, who are 
glad to return to her shades, and there are also many permanent summer 
guests. As a place of residence as well as resort, this town has an edu- 
cational attraction to those having young children, as well as numerous 
natural attractions. Pupils can prepare for Williams College, at Grey- 
lock Institute in South Williamstown, about four miles distant. For all 
purjjoses of country life Williamstown stands high in the estimation of 
all who have lived here. The social and educational features, and the 
natural beauty, wilduess and picturesqueuess of the town and its 
neighbors, make it a choice place of resort, whether for a short vacation, 
or for the season; for a country home in addition to a city home, or for 
permanent residence. 



SHHFPlBIvD. 

^, I ^ followinf^ the course of the Housatonic through Berkshire, 
' the southernmost of the villages strung like heads upon its 



I 



shining thread, is Sheffield, lying in a peaceful hreadth of 
valley, where every thing speaks of calm and repose. The soft 
curves of the hills and mountains surrounding it are repeated 
with constant variety of outline, but all impressed with the same gentle 
character. On the west, Taconic swelling to the rounded height of the 
Dome, nearly 3,000 feet above the sea, broods like a vast bird over the 
valley. On the south, the Canaan Hills, from their direction east and 
west, take all changing effects of sunshine, and offer an endless study of 
variety in color, and light and shade, while to the north and east the river 
meadows, dotted with graceful trees, abd watered by 

' Streams that with their bordering thickets strive 
To hide their wuidings,' 
lead the eye to the upland farms beyond, and to the woocjed hills which 
crown and protect them. Among the heights are wild and romantic 
ravines, shaggy precipices, and leaping brooks, easily to be reached by 
the adventurous explorer, but the prevailing expression of the open 
valley is slumbrous tranquility, and its most fitting atmosphere the 
tender, Indian summer-like haze which frequently enfolds it. Yet 
often it is no less beautiful in those resplendent days with which our New 
England climate makes us all familiar, when the sky is sapphire, and 
the air is crystal, and there is a keen invigoration in the breeze, and a 
quick sparkle from the water, and a crisp splendor over the entire land- 
scape. If seems then as if you could count the leaves in the deep forests 
on Taconic, and it must have been under this aspect that it was seen, 
according to a village tradition, by the celebrated John C. Calhoun. 
Passing a night at the inn, and finding in the morning that he had half 
an hour before breakfast, he said, much to the amusement of the land- 
lord, that he would employ the time in taking a walk to the foot of the 
mountain. It is four miles as the crow flies, but on a clear morning, an 
unaccustomed eye still finds it hard to believe it more than one-fourth of 
that distance." So writes Miss Mary E. Dewey, with a keen appreciation 
of the charms of her native town, and yet unable to exaggerate them. 



134 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIKE. 




The Shefhelu Elm 



the book of beiikshire. 135 

An Attractive Resort. 

When coming to Berkshire, people have been too neglectful of this 
town and village. Every glance around the village brings repose to the 
visitor and admiration for its neatness. The broad Main street has per- 
fect lawns, smooth and well cared for, and few streets are so finely- 
shaded. Four rows of mai:»les and elms extend along this street, a rare 
sight in any village. The elms were set out in 1848. In a hot summer 
day, to sit under these trees or stroll among them is a refreshment of no 
common order. 

There are ample accommodations for visitors in Sheffield at the hotel, 
in village families or among farmers around town. The Miller House 
offers good entertainment to guests, under the proprietorship of James 
E. Conway. In and near the village of Ashley Falls, four miles south 
of Sheffield village, boarders are taken at a few houses. 

Walks and Drives. 

The roads of Sheffield are improving under a more intelligent working 
than they had not many years ago, and afford a great number of delighl- 
ful drives, the principal of which are included in the table of drives. No 
town in the county has more miles of roads than this one, there being 
over a hundred, and the rides that may be had over them are all truly 
Berkshire in their characteristics. 

A delightful walk is down Main street to the Big Elm, a mile south of 
the center. This tree is one of the giants of its kind, long famed for its 
wide spreading branches. Dr. Holmes refers to it in his "Autocrat of the 
Breakfast Table." A walk of a mile out to the east side of the rivei-, 
near William M. Chapin's place, will secure a most delightful view of the 
Housatonic Valley, which, in Sheffield, is at its widest place, with the 
magnificent background and the Taconics, with the Dome in the center, 
to the westward. The drive along this east road from Alum Hill, whero 
the view is very fine, to Great Barrington, is one of Berkshire's bes*". 
Pine Knoll, on the eastern outskirts of the village, overlooking the 
meadows, is a place to which a very noteworthy walk of a few hundred 
yards is often taken. Through the liberality of several jieople then 
present, and former residents, three acres, composing the Pine Knoll 
were bought, fenced and fitted up in 1884 at an expense of $1,000, and 
placed in perpetual trust as a public resort, for strolling, picnics 
and meetings under the tall pine trees that constitute a shady grove. A 
walk of one mile out to the west is to Bear's D^n, a wooded mount that 
rises to a height of 200 feet from the plain. From the summit of precip- 



136 THE BOOK OF BEKKSHIBE. 

itous rocks on the east side, there is a fine outlook, where picnic parties 
often go, and on the west slope there is a deep ravine, darkly shaded and 
cool, where fissures and disrupted rocks constitute cave-like places, one 
of which used to be the home of a bear. 

Sage's Kavine. 
Sage's Ravine, in the southwest corner of Sheffield, and partly in Salis- 
bury, Ct., and Mount Washington, is nowhere surpassed in wildness and 
general effect. To reach it, visitors leave the under mountain road a 
little south of the place where the brook crosses it. Here the scene is 
enough to give the visitor a sharp appetite for what he expects to see 
further up the mountain. An old mill was once situated by the roadside, 
whose wheel was turned by the water of the stream, and the view from 
below, which was very striking and still is, though the mill is gone, was 
engraved for "Picturesque America." The ravine is situated between 
Eace and Bear mountains, and the water that comes down descends in 
many cascades and falls, a distance of several hundred feet in about as 
many yards. Here the very extreme of wildness is reached, among the 
boulders and walls of rock, the ragged cliffs and crags, the dark, tangled 
forest, the roar and sjjlash of the mad waters. The ascent may be rather 
difficult for timid ladies, but no one who is not a weak invalid should or 
need be deterred from the undertaking. The darkest time is in the after- 
noon; in the morning, when the sun shines directly on the main fall, a 
rainbow is seen in the spray, a most charming effect. It was Henry 
Ward Beecher who declared that a visit to this ravine was worth a trip 
from Xew York every month in the year. 

The Under Mountain Yiews. 
The views from the under mountain road going north of the ravine, 
awakened the profoundest admiration in Mr. Beecher. Of it he writes: 
"Meanwhile the sun is wheeling behind the mountains. Already its 
broad shade begins to fall down upon the plain. The side of the moun- 
tain is solemn and sad. Its ridge stands sharp against a fire bright 
horizon. Through the heavens are slowly sailing continents of magnifi- 
cent fleece mountains — Alps and Andes of vapor. They, too, have their 
broad shadows. Upon yonder hill, far to the east of us, you see a cloud 
shadow making gray the top, while the base is radiant with the sun. 
Another cloud shadow is moving with stately grandeur along the valley 
of the Housatonic; and, if you rise to a little eminence, you may see the 
bright landscaiie growing dull in the sudden obscuration on its forwaid 



TlIK BOOK OF BERKSUIRE. 137 

line, and growing as suddenly bright upon its rear trace. How majesti- 
cally that shadow travels up those steep and precipitous mountain sides ! 
How it swoops down the gorge and valley and moves along the plain ! " 

In a clothier's shop on the roadside at the south side of the ravine, 
strange occurrences began November 8, 1S02. Stones and other articles 
were thrown through the windows night and day for several days, and, 
though many people came to discover the authors of the disturbance, 
the origin of the doings has always remained a mystery. The operation 
was soon transferred to a house 100 rods north, and though the stones 
came with great velocity, they often stopped at the window sill. Witch- 
craft was supposed to be at the bottom of the mystery, which has been 
made historical. 

Works of Nature. 

The Ice Gulf, mentioned in the account of Great Barrington, is ap- 
proached over Brush Hill, and entrance is made at the west opening. 

Mossy Glen, back of the home of Isaac Spur, under the mountain at 
the base of the dome, is a wild, cool, shady place, where people often go 
and have picnics. 

A mile above Frank Curtis' sjjlace, under the mountain, and half a mile 
back of Langdon Ilulett's house, is a small natural cave called the Bat's ' 
Den, which is a curiosity to those who have never seen natural caves. 

People often ascend the Dome from the east side on foot, if they are 
good at mountain climbing, after riding to the base. 

The greatest attraction for Sheffield people is the beautiful Twin 
Lakes, and on the road thither, the outlook from Cooper Hill is too ex- 
quisite ever to be forgotten. 

Ashley Mountain, southeast of Cooper Hill, east of the Twin Lakes, 
and bringing to an end on the south the broad part of the Housatonic 
valley is a broad, easily ascended mountain partly in Sheffield and partly 
in Salisbury seven to eight hundred feet above the valley, that offers one of 
the most varied and wide panorama of views that can be had elsewhere 
in the whole Berkshire region from a hill of no greater eminence. The 
summit is wooded and the views must be had lower down. A two or 
three-mile circuit of the mountain exposes every point of the compass. 
The view to the north is i^robably the best northern view in the whole 
region ; the west takes in the Salisbury landscape with the lovely Twin 
Lakes and the Taconic background; on the east are the Canaan Valley 
and the bold Canaan Mountain, and on the south appear an extensive 
list of components. It is a pity that there is no public road up the 
mountain; one can ride over a poor private road part way up the 



138 THE BOOK OF BEKKSHIKE. 

mountain, but most of the sightseeing must be done on foot, and where 
the forest does not obscure the outlook. 

Among the out of town excursions, besides those mentioned, are those 
to Lake Buel, Bashbish, Great Barrington, Stockbridge and Lenox. 

Social Features. 

" Without water-power, or any manufacturing interest," writes Miss 
Dewey, "Sheffield is exclusively a farming and grazing township. Rye, 
corn, oats, and potatoes, delicious butter, rich milk, and ruddy applet 
are her contributions to the comforts of the world, nor does she lack for 
fruits, but can show large vineyards, and cherry, pear, and peach or- 
chards. There is a general diffusion of comfort, though little wealth, 
among her scattered farm-houses, and much shrewdness, and what 
might be called latent intelligence among her people, who feel to the 
full the advantages and disadvantages of a purely agricultural district."' 
With other agricultural products may be mentioned tobacco, of which 
the Sheffield farmers raise much that is declared by the United States 
census of 1880, in a special report, to be, with the tobacco of the other 
Ilousatonic valley towns, the best that is raised in the nation. 

One of the principal winter pleasures of the quiet village is a society 
called the Friendly Union, which meets on Friday evenings for social, 
and literary purposes. The sessions usually begin with a lecture, or 
reading, or concert, or dramatic entei'tainment, or debate, after which 
games may be played. This was organized in 1871, principally through 
the efforts of Miss Dewey. These social meetings have attained some 
celebrity in their way and have been the means of suggesting organiza- 
tion of similar "friendly unions" in other parts of the country. 

Distinguished Natives. 
Sheffield has been the native place or the home of many remarkable 
persons, principally in branches of the Dewey and Barnard families. 
The Kev. Dr. Orville Dewey who was born here and who passed the lat- 
ter part of his life at his home on the south part of Main street, "St. 
David's," " ranks as one of the ablest and best beloved of the early ex- 
ponents of American Unitariauism." His "Problem of Human Des- 
tiny," written in Sheffield in 1850-1, is one of the ablest works of the 
American intellect. Several volumes of published sermons show that 
Dr. Dewey was master of a most perfect style. He preached in Boston, 
New Bedford, New York, Washington and several other places. Fur 
many years Dr. Dewey entertained noted friends at his home here. 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIBE. 139 

among them the Rev. Dr. Heniy "W. Bellows ; and Catherine M. Sedgwick, 
in 1854, wrote, after a visit here, "I never saw a less ostentatious, or a 
more cordial and effective hospitality." Dr. Dewey's daughter, Miss 
Mary E. Dewey, of Sheffield and Boston, has long been known for her 
literary and philanthropic efforts, and her sister, Miss Jerusha Dewey 
of Bridgeport, Conn., has written much on religious topics. Major-Gen- 
eral John G. Barnard, who was born here and who always had a country 
home in the village, " Netherby Hall," now owned by his widow, served 
in the Mexican war with distinction, was superintendent of the Military 
Academy, as an engineer he superintended the construction of fortifica- 
tions at San Francisco, New York and elsewhere, he directed the siege 
operations of the armies of the Potomac in the Peninsular campaign, had 
charge of the defences at Washington, he was Genei-al Grant's chief en- 
gineer of the armies in the field, and was the author of more than half a 
dozen scientific works. Dr. Frederick A. P. Barnard, his brother, 
President of Columbia College since 1864, was previously prominently 
connected with many institutions of learning, and during his life has 
been active and leading in literary, scientific and educational matters. 
He has written many works, principally of a scientific nature. Daniel 
Dewey, a native of Sheffield, was Judge of the Supreme Court; the Eev. 
Dr. Chester Dewey, also a native, was professor in "Williams College and 
the University of Rochester, and was long principal of the Collegiate 
Institute at Rochester. Daniel Dewey Barnard, long distinguished in 
political life, was minister to Prussia, 1849-53. Sheffield also was the 
native town of Bishop Edmund S. Janes, who had reason to say, as he 
did, "1 have always been proud of my native town." Robert G. Fitch, 
once editor of the Boston Post, went from the eastern part of Sheffield, 
now in New Marlboro. Paul Dewey, uncle of the Rev. Dr. Orville 
Dewey, was a man of strong parts, thovigh not known beyond this 
limited region. It is traditional that the celebrated French author, 
Chateaubriand, staying at a Sheffield tavern one night while on his way 
to or from Albany, casually entered into conversation with Mr. Dewey 
in the evening, and that the Frenchman found the conversation so in- 
teresting, in which Mr. Dewey paid him the same compliment, that 
neither knew that the whole night had passed, till dawn had brought the 
fact to their notice. Theodore Sedgwick practiced law in this town for 
several years. In the lower cemetery are the graves of General John 
Ashley and General John Fellows, the former born in town and both 
nearly life-long residents, and revolutionary officers. 
Sheffield has been famous for building marble. A part of the Girard 



140 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 

College building is made of marble from an old quarry in the northern 
part of the town, and marble was supplied from this or some other 
quarry for the inside finish of the Boston Custom House, for the New 
York City Hall and Court House, and for the Berkshire County Court 
House in Pittsfield. 

Two years and four months before the Mecklenburg "Declaration of In- 
dependence," January 12, 1773, Sheffield, in town meeting assembled, 
passed a remarkable series of resolutions that were a Declaration of 
Eights and Grievances. They have been hidden away from the historian, 
but they undoubtedly place the town first of all in the Thirteen Colonies 
in point of time in announcing the right of self-government, independent of 
British rule. In 1774 the town had up for consideration the question of 
the "inhuman practice of enslaving our fellow creatures, the natives of 
Africa." 

This was the stuff that the ancestry of most of the present town's- 
people was made of. Nowhere can now be found better specimens of 
the " independent f aimer " than in this town. Among them and the 
village people, and at the village hotel, the people of cities who would 
escape from unhappy living, will find quiet, agreeable and well 
kept resorts. 




E 



The Parish of South Egkemont. 
■^ GREMONT is divided into two villages, South Egremont and 
North Egremont. Situated midway between the excellent 
facilities, busy life and social brightness of Great Barrington 
on the one hand, and the airy, prospect-commanding summits 
of ]^";ount Washington on tbe other, the pleasant little village 
of -South Egremont always receives a generous share of Berkshire's 
summer patronage. Nestled in a quiet nook of the broad but broken 
Egremont Plain, under the very shadow of the grand old Dome, w^itli 
its pretty white church spire and cool, shady streets, it is one of the 
most perfect specimens we have of the unspoiled New England 
vi^llage. In every direction are most delightful drives over smooth, 
level roads, some of the very best in the county. They will take you 
north to Prospect Lake, three miles and a half distant, and to White's 
Hill; west through Guilder Hollow to the foot hills of Mount Wash- 
ington, with Bashbish Falls and the Dome, and Bear Rock a few miles 
beyond; south by a pleasant winding way to Sheffield, Sage's Ravine 
and Twin Lakes, or east four miles by the gentle waters of Green River, 
and past beautiful liomes with park-like grounds to the elm lined streets 
of Great Barrington, and beyond to Lake Buel, Monument Mountain, 
Stockbridge and Lenox. The list of these drives is about the same as 
that for Great Barrington and the distance in most instances may be 
quite accurately estimated by taking into account, when necessary, 
the distance between these villages, which are four miles apart. 
However, there are some special drives and distances that ought 
to be mentioned and these may be found elsewhere in this volume. The 
shriek of the locomotive has never disturbed its Sabbath-like repose, 
yet the village is easily reached from the Hillsdale station of the Harlem 
railroad, six miles distant, and from Great Barrington on the Housa- 
tanic road, four miles off. Stage leaves Great Barrington at 10 A. m., 
South Egremont at 5 p. m. Stage leaves Hillsdale 3 p. m., South Egre- 
mont at 1 1 A. M. 

Mount Everett House. 

People of quiet tastes, whose means may or may not be limited, love 
to come here in an unostentatious way, enjoy a brief respite from 



142 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 



care, turmoil and excitement, and when they have drunk their fill of 
country invigoration depart as quietly as they came. For more than 
twenty years they have come and gone in this way, and of late their 
number has steadily increased. 

The Mount Everett House, where most of them expect, as a matter of 
course, to stay, stands on a pleasant corner facing north, where a 
hotel of some kind has flourished since 1780. Under its inviting sign 
the stage coaches of the famous old Hartford and Albany turnpike used 
to stop in former days for "refreshments." W. B. Peck, the present 
proprietor, has been in charge since 1871. To his judicious manage- 
ment very much of South Egremont's popularity as a summer resort is 
due. He has thoroughly mastered the most difficult of all arts, that of 
making his guests feel not only well treated but quite at home. On his 
register are the names of such men as Charlton T. Lewis, J. F. Mead, 
Eobert Carter, John T. Baker, J. E. Browning, E. C. Dillingham, J. H. 
Goodsell, R. W. Ross, Walter Hanford, Rev. T. A. Eaton and John L. 
Kennedy, all of New York ; Dr. L. J. Sanford, Judge E. J. Sanford, 
Lewis Hotchkiss, all of New Haven, Conn. ; Walter Callender, Prov- 
idence, R. I., and John J. Lambert, Troy, N. Y. 

There are several houses in the village where boarders are taken, or 
where people who take meals at the hotel may find lodging, and some- 
times there is a house or so to rent. 

Thei'e is an old brick house in the village, built in 1761, with the date 
on the front wall, and A. for Anna, and J. T. for John TuUer, with a 
heart represented between them, signifying the happy union between 
Mr. Tuller, the builder, and his wife. 

Some Men who have Lived Here. 
Associated with Egremont are the names of several men who have 
attained more or less reputation. Grosvenor P. Lowery, who was born in 
North Egremont, is one of the leading members of the bar in New York 
city, where he is counsel for great telegraph, railroad and express com- 
panies. He comes this way now and then. Andrew Reasoner, born in 
South Egremont, achieved success in railway construction and manage- 
ment for the Harlem, the Hudson River, the Long Island, the Milwaukee 
& St. Paul, the Great Eastern, the Morris & Essex and the Delaware, 
Lackawanna & Western railroads, and of the last two consolidated, he 
is now superintendent, living at Morristown, N. J. Governor H. B. 
Bigelow of Connecticut, received his school education at the South 
Egremont Academy, and was a railway station agent in Housatonic. 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 143 

Chester Goodale, who died here at the age of 93 in 1884, was a leading 
man in town during nearly his whole life. He put the Mount Everett 
House in its present shape in 1853. The buttonball trees near the brook 
opposite the hotel, he set out in 1813. He was the grandfather of the 
*' Sky Farm Poets," the Goodale sistei'S. In 1836 he bought quarries 
two miles on the road to Sheffield and during the 40 years that he worked 
them he furnished the marble of which the columns, bases and architraves 
of Girard College were made. 

The Parish of North Egremont. 
This village is very favorably situated for miking country life agreea- 
ble to city i)eople. The quietude that reigns is supreme, the roads are 
unexcelled and the mountain resorts are near at hand. Prospect Lake 
is only a half mile away, where there is every convenience for aquatic 
sport, picnic parties and camping out, with a building for shelter, if 
needed. The lake has thousands of visitors every season. 

Kemarkable Echoes. 

At the top of the mountain on the road to Hillsdale, two miles dis- 
tant, is a place, at the Summit House, where several Echoes are re- 
turned to every noise in rapid succession. There is one i:)lace where a 
single Echo is returned, one where two Eclipes are heard, another where 
three, and still another where four are heard, and, when the air is tran- 
quil, the Whispering Echo is audible. The reflected noise comes back 
with the greatest distinctness, and the places where the sound is re- 
turned with so many variations are all within twenty rods of each other. 

There are several boarding houses in the village and outside, mostly 
owned by farmers, where the fare is good, but not high priced. Stage 
leaves Great Barrington at 10 A. m., and North Egremont at 3 p. m. 
Stage leaves Hillsdale 3 p. m., and North Egremont 11.30 a. m. 

Green River, that charming little stream, with its clear water, shady 
banks, overhanging trees and vines, and pebbly bottom, runs close by the 
village. 

White's Hill. 

Now and then Berkshire people wake up to the fact that some hill or ' 
some road that has been slightingly familiar to them for years, is a place 
of fine outlook, and at once the spot is raised to local fame; or, so numer- 
ous are such places, that the people are indifferent explorers, and occa- 
sionally discover one by accident. Of this kind was White's Hill, three 
miles northwest of North Egremont village, and a little over the State 



144 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 



line in Xew York. The view from tliis hill is far reaching, an<l so grandly 
beautiful as to be beyond descrii^tion. One can drive to the very sum- 
mit, where a rustic observatory ])rotects the visitor from sun and storm. 
Few people are masters of the language enough to do a tithe of justice 
to the views; perhaps no one has succeeded so well as '' Octavia Hen- 
sel," whom we quote from the Home Journal: "A more perfect evening 
could not be imagined; the sky was that peculiar genetian blue, seen 
nowhere but in Italy and Berkshire, while great banks of fleecy clouds, 
like frosted silver in sunlight, floated away to the noi'tb. The air was 
full of the perfume of wild raspberries, in tangles of fern and briar 
roses. The chestnuts shook their tasseled blooms of emerald, and 
the mountain pines murmured in the soft scented breeze. 

" Words cannot describe the wonder of the scene. We have ascended 
the Swiss mountains, wandered over Tyrolean heights, ridden through the 
mountain fastnesses of the Karpathians, and penetrated the depths of 
the Bohemian forest hills; but never before has such perfect grandeur 
of mountain scene, splendid expanse of valley, plain and woodland, 
filled the circumfei-ence of the earth! High up on this i)innacle, turn 
which way you will, the sight stretches away a hundred miles to mount- 
ain ranges, meeting the cloudland of the horizon. * * * To the north 
the Austerlitz Valley seemed balanced in a moss-cushioned swing, so 
strangely semi-circular is the curve of its hills upon the east and west. 
Along the northern mountain ranges, until Greylock's saddle-sha])cd 
mountain towers up blue and dim into fleecy cloudland. Then along to 
the east, where the Monument Mountain seems but a tiny hill against a 
triple range of earth waves, rolling their broad billows away into the 
boundless blue of infinite distance. Mahaiwe's Valley, defined by morn- 
ing mists floating up into the rose light of the upper air, sparkled with 
the silver threads of its streams, — Green River twining through meadows 
' in a path of light,' and Housatonic's deeper waters gleaming gold in the 
sunshine. But, grandest of all, rise the superb domes of the Taconic 
range. Below them, over the southern plains, dimpled with valleys, 
dotted with hills, extend gardens of beauty, pines and elms, and fields of 
golden grain, among which the little villages of Copake and the Hillsdale 
hamlet lie in loveliest grouping. But the eye turns again to the far oft" 
cloudlands of the southwest, where the dim outlines, blue and misty as 
the heaven above them, of the Hudson highlands extend along the hori- 
zon. Then the Catskills take up the sublime story of eternal repose, and 
along the western sky they lead on to the Helderberg range and the 
Adirondacks of the north." 



MOUNT ^WASHINGXOIS. 




HIS town is one of the highest in the county 
and, of course, in the State, and its dry, 
salubrious, cool summer climate is ex- 
tremely refreshing to the city resident. 
The habitable portion of the mountain is 
a broad valley, on the slopes of which a few 
people live, above them rising many sum- 
mits, down which come the cooler breezes 
of the upper air. To this mountain town 
city people have come for years, and found 
entertainment at farmers' houses; and, with 
the increase of their profits, the farmers 
have enlarged their houses and prej^ared them comfortably for the 
reception of boarders. The first people who came to the mountain 
found keeping at "Farmer" Smith's about 18r)0, and it is believed that 
his first guests were Dr. Torrey and family, of Boston. Since that time 
the house has contained many people, some of them famous, as the old 
registers of visitors prove. All that the autograph fiends have left of 
them are now in possession of Isaac Spurr. 

The next one to keep boarders was Isaac Spurr, in 1861. He recalls in 
pleasant memory that the first dollar he earned after he was 21 was from 
Mrs. Charles Sedgwick, who came with a party of girls from her school 
in Lenox, and hired him to leave the coal bush and pilot them to the 
summit of the Dome. It was to this place that Catherine E. 
Beecher and her sister, Mrs. Perkins, of Hartford, came years ago. At 
that time Harper^s Magazine published a fancy sketch, entitled " The 
Little Black Dogs of Berkshire," written by Miss Beecher at Mr. Spurr's. 
Among his guests have been Prof. Joseph Henry, of the Smithsonian In- 
stitution; Prof. Short, of Columbia College, and members of the Livincr- 
ston, Ogden, De Puyster and Hoguet families. .A few years ago a party 
of sixty-four of the members of the American Institute of Mining Engi- 
neers stayed here for dinner, and the register of that date bears the 
names of T. Sterry Hunt, Joseph D. Weeks, and many other familiar 
names. 

10 



146 THE BOOK OF BEKKSHIRE. 



Such people as the following now come to Mount Washington: Isaac 
Spurr's — Mrs. Thomas D. Pearce, Mis. M. A. Chapman, Miss M. Cresson, 
all of Philadelphia; Frank Goodrich, Oswald Jackson, New York; Mrs. 
C. B. Williams, Whitestone, L. I.; Miss Gummere, Burlington, N. J.; 
Miss S. F. Corlis, Miss Olivia Rodham, Swarthmore, Pa. At William H. 
Weaver's — Miss B. D. Sharpless, Mrs. Elizabeth Williams, Miss B. Far- 
nail, Philadelphia; the Rev. Thomas Fisher, Hartford; A. A. Patton, 
Yonkers, N. Y. At Ira L. Patterson's — Mrs. H. C. Meinell, Montclair, 
N. J. ; Mr. and Mrs. Janes, New York. Mrs. Janes has been here every 
year since she was a girl. At O. C. Whitbeck's — Dr. Charles Milne, A. 
Frissel, New York; Miss Lever, West New Brighton, Staten Island; 
Lieutenant Schroeder, of the United States navy; Prof. Jean Roemer, C. 
H. Flagg, Thomas S. Strong, New York; Isaac H. Allen, Brooklyn. Mr. 
Whitbeck's is the most elevated boarding house on the Taconics. At 
Frank B. Schutt's there is always a houseful. 

At the Alandar House, which is the largest house on the mountain at 
the south end, and an exceedingly well kept house, too, the following 
have been guests : Mrs. Charles Dudley Warner, Hartford ; W. H. Ham- 
ilton, Mrs. W. B. Wooster, both of Albany; John Ritchie, Jr., Boston; 
the Rev. J. M. Taylor, Providence, R. I. ; Captain A. L. King, Clifton, 
Staten Island; Prof. E. D. Cope, Newbold H. Trotter, Dr. Spencer Ti'ot- 
ter, all of Philadelphia; William Evans, Dr. Joseph Stokes, both of 
Moorestown, N. J.; Dr. Norman Smith, Dr. John T. Metcalf, the Rev. N. 
E. Cornwall, A. Slaight Jones, all of New Yoi'k; Mrs. C. P. Newbold, 
Alexander H. Stuart, both of Brooklyn; H. J. Gelien, Whitestone, L. I.; 
the Rev. Joseph M. Bruce, Hudson, N. Y. 

Several years ago, the late Mrs. T. L. Walsh came here and bought a 
place, to which she came every summer. 

In 18S4, Philip C. Garrett, of Philadelphia, who had been a guest of 
the Alandar House, bought 150 acres of land and built a large, fine cottage 
on a high hill, having the vast side of Mount Alandar, with its many 
gorges, in sight on the west, and mountain tops and wild forests on all 
sides. At this '"Wyldmere," Mr. Garrett lives every summer. The be- 
ginning thus made in establishing mountainous homes here must, in 
time, lead to the acquisition of the principal portions of the mountain 
for this purpose. 

Peculiabities of the Town. 
The eight or ten boarding houses of the mountain are only three to 
five miles from the Copake Iron Works Station of the Harlem Railroad. 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 147 

New England people commonly 2:0 to Great Barrington, where they are 
met by their future host, who carries them in a wagon ten to fifteen 
miles to liis mountain home, a most delightful ride. A stage runs over 
tlie mountain from Great Barrington to Copake Iron Works, leaving the 
former place at 10 a. m. and the latter at 2 p. m., both daily, except Sun- 
days. Less of the friction of life one could hardly hope to find than in this 
mountain town. Hei'e is no I'ailroad station or express office, no tele- 
graph ofiice, no "store" or manufactory of any description, no grist 
mill, no blacksmith shop, no brass band, no resident lawyer, doctor, or 
clergyman. 

The roads of Mount Washington, though level in few places, are 
easily traveled over and are kept in a good state of repair. 

The Goodale Family. 

At "Sky Farm" at the north end of Mount Washington, at the top 
of the long ascent from Guilder Hollow, for many years lived Henry S. 
and Mrs. D. H. R. Goodale, and their children, Elaine and Dora R., all 
more or less known for their writings in verse and prose. Mrs. Goodale 
has long been a contributor to the best periodical publications, and her 
daughters, at first known as the " Sky Farm poets," achieved fame in 
early girlhood as promising poets of nature. Readers often come across 
the productions of Mrs. Goodale and her daughters in Harper s, in Good 
Housekeeping, in St. Nicholas, and in other publications. The Misses 
Goodale have issued several volumes of poems, but the first one, " Apple 
Blossoms," perhaps, met with the best reception, "In Berkshire with 
the Wild Flowers " coming next. The Goodale family left the mountain 
several years ago. 

The Dome of the Taconics. 

There are many places of interest on this mountain, remarkable for 
extensive, wild, picturesque and beautiful scenery. There is no moun- 
tain outlook in Berkshire, indeed there is said to be none in all New 
England not even excepting the White Mountains, that equals, in the 
last two respects, the outlook from the top of the Dome. In a clear 
day, land is visible in Vermont, New Hampshire, Connecticut, and New 
York, and it is said that mountains in New Jersey and Pennsylvania 
have been sighted. The intervening country aftords a vast domain for 
the eye to feast upon, as one stands upon this Dome of the Taconics, 
2,624 feet above the ocean and about 2,000 feet above the Housatonic 
valley below. Greylock stands out boldly 40 miles toward the north; the 
chains of the Catskills, with sharp outlines and peaks, wall in the west 



148 



THE BOOK OF BERKSniHE. 




s?*--^ 



Sky Farm Cottage. 



TllK BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 149 

at a distance of 35 miles. The Shawangunk Mountains can be seen far 
in the southwest ; the low hills of Long Island, 100 miles to the south 
have been seen, and blue water beyond, though rarely. The Housatonic 
Valley lies in beauty on the east and the broader Hudson River Valley 
spreads out on the west. Near by, the mountain valleys and summits 
catch the eye, on the remainder of Mount Washington. These apjiear at 
their best in the early autumn, as may be inferred from a description by 
the Rev. S. W. Powell in the New York Evangelist : "I could see look- 
ing westward, that the dark green of the hemlock was everywhere 
'picked out' by the scarlet of the sumac and soft maple; while the oak, 
the beech, and the chestnut gave less vivid browns, reds, and yellows. 
Here and there the bright gold of the sugar maple lit up the space 
around it. Everywhere birches and hard maples just beginning to turn, 
afforded lovely olive tints. Several side-hills were solid masses of gold, 
while in some places naked cliffs that were almost waste gave, so to 
speak, a deep bass to the great symphony of color." 

The first publi.shed reference to an ascent of the Dome was that of 
President Dwight of Yale, in 1781. The following is an extract from 
Prof. Hitchcock's Geology of Massachusetts, i-elating to the Dome : " The 
central part is somewhat conical, almost naked eminence; except that, 
numerous yellow pines, two or three feet high, and huckleberry bushes 
have fixed themselves wherever the crevices of the rock afford sufiicient 
soil. Hence the view from the summit is entirely unobstructed. And 
what a view ! 

' In depth, in height, in circuit, how serene ! 
The spectacle, how pure ! — of nature's works 

In eartli and air, * 

A revelation infinite it seems. ' 

You feel yourself to be standing above everything around you, and feel 
the proud consciousness of literally looking down upon all terrestrial 
scenes. Before you on the east, the valley through which the Housa- 
tonic wanders, stretches far northward in Massachusetts, and southward 
into Connecticut, sprinkled over with copse and glebe, with small sheets 
of water and beautiful villages. To the southeast, especially, a large 
sheet of water appears (Twin Lakes), of surpassing beauty. In the 
southwest the gigantic Alandar, Riga and other mountains more re- 
mote, seem to bear the blue heavens on their heads in calm majesty; 
while stretching across the far distant west, the Catskills hang like the 
curtains of the sky. Oh I what a glorious display of mountains all around 
you I And how does one in such a spot turn round and round, and drink 



150 THE BOOK OF BEKKSIIIKE. 



in new glories, and feel his heart swelling more and more with emotions 
of sublimity, until the tired optic nerve shrinks from its office. This 
certainly is the grandest prospect in Massachusetts [Prof. Hitchcock 
had explored the whole State] and the first hour that one spends in such 
a spot is among the richest treasures that memory lays up in her 
storehouse." 

The Rev. J. T. Headley, the biographer, is among the many men who 
have gone into ecstasies over the scene from the Dome. He writes: 
" You are the center of a circle of at least 350 miles in circumference; 
and such a circle! I cannot tell of the prodigality of beauty that meets 
the eye at every turn. You seem to look on the outer wall of creation, 
and this old Dome seems to be the spot on which nature set her great 
compasses when she drew the circle of the heavens. A more beautiful 
horizon I have never seen than sweeps around you from this spot. The 
charm of the view is perfect on every side — a panorama, which becomes 
a moving one if you will but take the trouble to turn it round." 

There has long been a protest against adopting the name that Prof. 
Hitchcock gave to this summit — Mount Everett— and as the way to 
abandon the name is to first make beginning, we voice the united public 
sentiment of the region and use "The Dome of the Taconics" (often 
abbreviated to " The Dome,") to designate this mountain. As long ago 
as 1850, Miss Sedgwick, during one of her visits from Lenox, wrote in 
the register at " Farmer" Smith's: 

" Oh call it not Mt. Everett! 
Forever 'tis the Dome 

Of the great Temple God has reared 
In this, our Berkshire home." 

The best authorities now say that Taconic is the corruption of an Indian 
word meaning the smaller of two sources of a river, and applied to the 
Bashbish stream. Through the misunderstanding of the settlers the 
name was given to the mountain down which the stream comes, and 
later the whole range got the name. The town of Mount Washington 
ought to have been named Taconic, for the present name is not so ap- 
propriate and is misleading. The main road leading to the Dome begins 
on the opposite side of the road from the Walsh place, but a road from 
the Smith place joins it. 

BASHBISH. 

Along the eastern side of Alandar runs toward the north a stream that, 
lower down, is called the Bashbish. It has been said to be an Indian 
onomatopoetic name, suggested by the sound of the falling water, and 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 



lol 




Bashbish Lower Falls. 



152 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 



Miss Sedgwick thought it to be of Swiss origin; but these are errors, for 
the uame is undoubtedly of vulgar origin, coming to its present form 
from the Dutch corruption of English. Just opposite the perpendicular 
north end of Alandar, after plunging 200 feet, in all, down through a 
narrow rocky gorge, whose sides tower 200 and 300 feet above, over sev- 
eral precipitous slopes that, taken together, are the noted Bashbish 
Falls; and just after the last leap of sixty feet, where the water is divided 
by a huge boulder on the brink, the stream tui-ns sharp to the west, and 
goes dancing away to join the Hudson through a gorge made by the north 
end of Alandar and the south end of Cedar Mountain. Below the falls 
it descends 300 feet in a short distance. Into the valley of this roman- 
tic stream, from either side above the falls, come several tributary 
narrow valleys, which in their lower portions are narrow gorges, and to 
clamber through them is so difficult, and often so dangerous, as to be 
very enticing to those of an adventurous turn of mind. A trip to the 
Falls is always a day's excursion, and should include a walk from 
the lower falls to the Eagle's Nest, to the Look-off, and to the upper 
falls, and returning by the highway. When going down the road in the 
gorge above the falls, the Old Man of the Mountain, or Profile Rock, will 
be seen high up on the right. This towering head is approachable from 
above, and commands a magnificent view of the gorge, the Catskills and 
the in^erveniug country. 

Beecher wrote of this place in his Star Papers: "I would willingly 
make the journey once a month from New York to see it." A sample 
ride to Bashbish from any of the towns of the Housatonic Valley is thus 
described by a Lenox correspondent of the Home Journal in early 
autumn: "Last week twelve ladies and gentlemen, on pleasure bent, 
filled a mountain wagon, and, with six good horses, took the drive from 
this dear old Lenox through the lovely village of Great Barrington to 
Bashbish. Soft autumn winds, laden with balm, and the mingled odor 
of late fruits, pine, wintergreen and flowers, came to us from the beauti- 
ful Berkshire Hills ; winds which felt as if they might drive away all care 
and trouble, fine old elms arched overhead, fields spread out far and 
hazy, vuiseen brooks babbled by, all seemed full of so much peace that I 
longed for the language of a poet .to express my uplifted joyous feel- 
ings." On the way home in the evening, " the tender glow of the sunset 
lingered over the darkening mountains; stars peeped out here and there; 
the Housatonic River softly rushed along the base of the hills, while 
'in Nature's eyes we looked and rejoiced,' and wished our New York 
friends could have longer enjoyed this peace, this absolute repose, this 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 153 

regular life, which secures bodily health and gives tone to the mind ; 
away from the great centers of culture, yet so much mental and social re- 
finement within our reach, so much that is beautiful in nature to make 
the current of existence flow placidly on." 

A jjupil in Mount Holyoke Seminary visited this place many years ago, 
and was moved to compose a fanciful legendary poem, in the preface of 
which she wrote: The Bashbish Falls "are the anthem of Nature's 
hymn in New England, sent up to heaven from her wildest work. As I 
gazed upon those falls and the gray old mountains between which they 
dashed, I could exclaim: ' Oh! there is in Nature's charms a poetry so 
wild and deep that even a savage soul must bow and own its magic 
power.' " A ti-aveler writes: Though the visitor " may have gazed upon 
the wonders of Alpine scenery and the sublime revelations of the Valley 
of the Yosemite, and have listened to the awful thunder of Niagara, it is 
not without a silencing thrill of delight that the cataract of Bashbish 
greets the vision." After lying on the rock at the "Look-off," and look- 
ing over and down, "steady, indeed, must be the nerves that can arise 
from the prostrate position entirely unshaken." " It may be safely 
averred that there is scarcely on all the earth's surface so sublime a 
freak of nature as little known beyond its surrounding neighborhood." 

Prof. Hitchcock wrote a long account of Bashbish. Here, he says is 
" the most remarkable and interesting gorge and cascade in Massachu- 
setts." Referring to the Look-off, he writes: " I have scarcely ever felt 
such a creeping and shrinking of the nerves and such a disposition to 
draw back as here. Even though I took hold of the bushes with both 
hands, I could not comfortably keep my eye turned long into the fright- 
ful and yawning gulf. * * * Many persons who visit the falls do not 
ascend this precipice, but they lose more than half the interest of the 
scene. I feel the paucity of description for delineating such scenery." 
From the Look-off to the water directly below it is 104 feet, and to the 
foot of the lower falls about 350 feet, in a line somewhat inclined from 
perpendicular, but seemingly almost below. 

Alandar Eavine. 
Along the eastern base of Mount Alandar is Alandar Ravine, one of re- 
markable wildness, where the old forest, the ragged rocks and the 
stream make some uncommon effects. A little below the old mill dam 
are noteworthy cascades. From this old mill site, which is a mile from 
the Alandar House, a path leads to the top of Alandar, a rare walk of 
three miles. 



154 the book of berkshire. 

Mount Alandar. 

From the Baslibisli Look-off a path runs to the north end of Alan- 
dar and along its ridge for about four milefe south, where, after a 
sharp rise of about 100 feet, it goes on rising gradually to its highest 
point, which is marked by one of the signal poles of the United States 
Geological Survey at an elevation of 2,200 feet. " All along the ridge of 
Alandar," writes a correspondent of the New York Evening Post, "one 
gets a succession of beautiful views; and, especially, when the autumn 
colors are in their glory, one seems to be walking upon a great tloud 
shot through with the richest hues of sunset. Crimsons, scarlets, bright 
and old gold, bronzes, mauves, olives, etc., mingled with the various 
shades of green afforded by oaks and birches not yet touched, by the 
laurel, by pine of two or three varieties, and by the sombre hemlocks — 
all these, and many intermediate tints of brown, red, and gray are ex- 
quisitely mingled and proportioned." 

At the foot of Alandar on the west side, half a mile south of the 
Douglass place, is a great rock with a cavity underneath. From this is- 
sues a large stream of the purest and coldest water, and a very per- 
ceptible current of cold air. Tracks of animals have been seen leading 
into the cavern at one side. It is said that a boy has crawled into this 
crevice a considerable distance, and it is thought that there is a lake and 
a cave under the mountain. The water does not change with season in 
temperature or volume. 

Bear Rock and Taconic Falls. 
A most sightly and easily accessible place on the brow of the south 
end of Mount Race, a quarter of a mile in a direct line from Sage's 
Ravine and about a mile above the under mountain road, is Bear Rock, 
over which the outlet of Plantain Pond descends and makes the Taconic 
Falls. The water makes short work of a fall of several hundred feet, 
and the plunge over the rock in an early perpendicular cascade is visible 
from many points in the Housatonic valley in the south end of the 
county. The water descends 405 feet in falls and almost pei'pendicular 
cascades. The view from this rock is as indescribable as any in the 
county, it is so extensive, grand, beautiful, everything in one. Looking 
north one sees a mile away a ])recipice of more than a thousand feet on 
the east side of Race Mountain. The rock is generally approached over 
the east road on Mount Washington when the wagon is well loaded. A 
shorter way is up the steep road from below, a little north of Sage's 
Ravine; this road is so nearly on end that some people are frightened in 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 155 

riding over it; horses cannot dra^w much of a load up the ascent, nor 
hold back much going down. A few feet north of the place where the 
stream crosses the road, turn to the east and a few steps will take one 
to the rock. A walk of 21 miles from the Alandar House follows an 
old road through the woods west of Plantain Pond to Bear Kock. 

Other Places of Ixtekest. 

Plantain Pond, a short distance back of Bear Rock, and Guilder Pond, 
at the north base of the Dome, are sheets of clear water, surrounded by 
mountain summits and with a forest margin, so that they look precisely 
like many an Adirondack lake. Guilder Lake is seen on the triji to the 
Dome, and Plantain Lake on the Bear Piock trip. 

There are paths to nearly all the mountain tops, to Ethel, Cedar, 1,775 
feet high; Fray, 1,915 feet; Race, 2,300 feet; West, 2,300 feet; and Bear 
Mountain. The last is in the teri-itory of Salisbury, Conn., and is the 
highest land in Connecticut, with an elevation of 2,250 feet. It is but two 
miles from the Alandar House on Mount Washington, by a new path of 
half a mile leading from the highway. Fifty rods back of Mr. Garrett's 
house is a small lake of eight by ten acres, called Wyldmere, and imme- 
diately back of this is Lee Mountain, to the summit of which walks are 
made from the Alandar House. 

Drives are often made from Mount Washington to Lakeville, Conn., a 
distance of 12 to 17 miles, and to the Twin Lakes, 15 to 20 miles distant. 
Mount Riga lies south of Mount Washington, and for its attractions see 
the article on Salisbury. Monument Mountain, south of Alandar, has 
on its summit a monument that was erected in 1725 at the north- 
west corner of Connecticut. 

Sunset Mountain. 
One can drive to the top of Sunset Mountain, 1790 feet high, half a 
mile southwest of O. C. Whitbeck's, and hence it is more frequently 
visited than any other summit. Here, writes Mrs. D. H. R. Goodale, 
" The grandly outlined hills seem to stand about with a friendly near- 
ness, even when the purple duskiness of twilight is in all their folds, 
while, to the west, far off the slow-dropping sun floods the blue Cats- 
kills with his golden glory, and illumines their shadowy cloves, as he 
paints upon the sky above them all the evanishing splendor of his 
cloud-castles! The beautiful valley between, with its breadth of forest 
and field, with its nestling homes, its waving grain and clustering or- 
chards, takes on, moment by moment, those wonderful gradations of 



156 THE BOOK OF BEKKSHIRE. 

light and color that are the despair of painters. Through the air comes 
the soft tinkle of a distant cow-bell; peace is descending with the gatlier- 
ing darkness; the twilight is creeping on, but through its hush, the 
warmth, the glow, the promise of tlie sunset glory hngers in our hearts." 

What was formei'ly a part of the town of Mount Washington, Boston 
Corners, was set off to Xew York, because a prisoner arrested there 
could not be brought to a Massachusetts court without taking him 
through New York territory. At that place the celebrated fight between 
Tom Hyers and Yankee Sullivan took place, with an accompanying as- 
semblage of ruffians. 

About half a mile north of the Boston Corners station of the Harlem 
railway is a steep gorge on the west side of the mountain called the 
Blow Hole, where the wind concentrates and rushes down with tre- 
mendous force when it comes from the east. It sweeps across the Har- 
lem railroad at this place and is sometimes dangerous to passing trains. 
Several years ago a passenger train was blown from the track by the 
wind coming down this Blow Hole. 

A Few of Many Tributes. 

Prof. Hitchcock, in his report on the geology of Massachusetts, says 
that the scenery in and from this town would almost rejjay a luver of 
nature for a voyage across the Atlantic. " To one who has a taste for 
the wild, the romaotic and the grand in nature, those two days [spent on 
the Dome and at Bashbish] will be a season of delightful emotions." 

A part of Mrs. Goodale's tribute to this town is as follows: " High amid 
the hills of extreme Southern Berkshire, uplifted skyward where light 
and air, color, perfumery, song and silence of the summer days all come 
and go, pure, free, spontaneous, each with its own delicious, subtle 
charm, lies Mount Washington. Girt about with the everlasting hills in 
their serene steadfastness, with the wild Bashbish gorge on the south- 
west, and the western outlook bounded by the beautiful range of the 
Catskills, in no part of Berkshire is to be found more of the native 
majesty and loveliness of Nature. Green fields, cattle upon the hills, 
and scattered farm-houses speak of the hand of man, and yet there are 
broad stretches of woodland, occasionally, indeed, laid low by the wood- 
chopper's axe, and plumed with the soft, wavering smoke column of 
the charcoal i)it, but oftener answering only to the rhythmic fingers of 
the wind, and echoing no harsher sounds than the cooing of the wood- 
dove, or the persistent plaint of the whii>poor-will." 

An autumn correspondent of the New York Evening Post writes: "I 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIKE. 



15T 



had a large parlor, with a stove in it and a bed-room connecting. From 
all my windows the grandest and loveliest scenery was always inviting 
the eye. Within a few minutes' walk over a notch in Ashley Hill, ] 
could be in the great lonely wilderness, stretching away west and north 
to Alandar, and which at all times of day, but especially in the after- 
noon, was fairly palpitating with vivid color. On returning from long, 
bewitching tramps in that fairy-land to my good supper, my cozy lamp 
and long, restful evening over easy vacation reading, I was not obliged 
to take off my comfortable, easy flannels, or to listen to the chatter of a 
lot of fashionable fellow boarders; and, withal, the price at which I was 
gladly accommodated was less than that which in the summer months I 
must have paid for far more contracted and less comfortable accommoda- 
tions. By all means, let the lover of color, of tramping, and real comfort 
come just as the leaves begin to turn." 




Alandar House. 



158 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 




r.-Campbell's Falls, New Marlboro. 2.-Hotel, Bashbish Falls. 3.-Eastern Portal. 
Hoosac Tunnel. 4.— Natural Bridge, North Adams. s.-Upper Bashbish Falls. 



T«iORXH ADAMS. 

>-^t^ORTH ADAMS is the largest town in Northern Berkshire. The 
^L peculiarity of this part of the county is that the valleys are 
2^ narrow; there are no sweeps or basins like those at Pittsfield 
^^\\ and at Stockbridge, nor yet at Great Barrington. The mountain 
^ ♦ peaks, thrown up in great profusion, among which Greylock 

sits as king wherever you go, are nearer together and the valleys are 
in some places little more than defiles or gorges. Coming from the 
south, the Hoosac Valley is the path over which you go, beginning 
below Cheshire, nearly to Pittsfield, where the head waters of the 
Hoosac and a branch of the Housatouic rise almost in the same spriug. 
At Adams, the valley is quite narrow, widening a little at the north 
line of that town and the boundary of Xorth Adams until nearly to 
North Adams village, where it narrows again to a width of about a half 
mile. Looking straight ahead north, as one enters North Adams up 
this south branch of the Hoosac, the mountains rise up before one 
as though a dead stop had come; but the river finds its way to the 
west through a narrow pass for some distance, on towards Williamstown. 
In that direction, called at North Adams, the Williamstown Valley, it is 
wider again, and yet the grand old hills are on both sides with delight- 
fully panoramic views, as the distance opens, one after another. From 
the village of North Adams, as a base of observation, the other valley is 
to the east, following close the east branch of the Hoosac, a goodly 
stream tumbling turbuleutly down the inchne, all the way through 
Clarksburg. This east valley is narrow, in places almost a gorge, along 
which the highway winds, while on the right, following that stream 
northeast from the village, the everlasting hills rise continuously. This 
valley runs on through Clarksburg into Vermont and widens out into a 
magnificent valley at Stamford ; in that state to be sure, but so near 
North Adams and having its business so closely identified with it that it 
hardly seems that Stamford is out of Berkshire. 
The Busy Village. 
So, the peculiarity of North Adams lies in the fact that it has three 
valleys, each with many natural beauties, peculiar to itself, and these are, 
the Hoosac, coming from the 'south, its continuation to the west, called 



160 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 

the Williamstown Valley ; and, to the east, down which the east branch 
of the Hoosac runs, that known as the Stamford Valley. Along these 
valleys lies the village of North Adams, sometimes called "The Tunnel 
City," and it is so hidden in the valleys, in quiet dells and nooks, that a 
good view of the village is not obtained unless from some lofty height. 
Its population is about 11,000, and is the opposite of the Pittsfield 
quietude, in that it is busy, enterprising and pushing ; every man is a 
laborer, as it were, and there is probably no other village of its size in the 
state which has so many self-made men. The Hoosac is lined with mills 
and factories and the different industries have given names to the villa- 
ges grown up about them, as, "The Union," " Braytonville," "Grey- 
lock," "The Beaver," " The Glen," and many others. The main village 
is compactly built, and its mills are in the very center. 

The town's history runs back to the French and Indian war, and the 
site of the old Fort Massachusetts on the Hoosac Pdver, near Brayton- 
ville, between North Adams and Williamstown, is marked by an elm 
tree which was planted many years ago by the Williams College students. 
It is on the Harrison farm, and it is a wonder to many why the fort 
should have been placed there, for on each side are sharp ledges, from 
which the Indians could command almost with ease the interior of the 

stockade and fort. 

Natural Scenery. 

The natural scenery of North Adams is unexcelled in the county. It is 
all the more grand because the narrow valleys bring it so near. There 
are no distant outlines to cut the horizon but, rising almost abruptly 
from the valleys, the mountains lift their majestic heads. Com- 
ing up the south valley, the Hoosac, on the right, to the east, are the 
Green Mountains, or the Hoosacs, as they are called, and, by some, the 
Florida range, under which, two miles from the village, the vast Hoosac 
Tunnel was bored. To the left of this valley are the Taconics, with 
Greylock in plain view. There are first the foot hills, then a valley be- 
yond and, farther on, the peaks of the more abrupt mountains, such as 
Mount Williams and Bald Mountain. The eye rests on many prominent 
clear-cut views of mountain scenery in this valley, which are almost inde- 
scribable. To the west, in the Williamstown valleys, are the same 
ranges, this spur of the Taconics, thrown off, as it were, from the main 
range, the Saddle and Pine Cobble on the left, and the other peaks 
farther in Williamstown, making a beautiful valley and superb mountain 
views. North of the village, and almost making an impenetrable barrier, 
is the Pine Cobble, which, in the earlier years, was a great resort for 



THE BOOK OF BEBKSIIIRE. 161 

rattlesnakes, and it was the holiday of the town at the proper season 
to make a "bee," and go thence to dispatch the reptiles; there are yet 
many snake stories to be heard in the village of the wonderful exploits 
on these occasions. In the east valley, or the Stamford, the Green 
Mountain range is unbroken, excepting by this valley, which affords 
many beautiful views. 

In the Hoosac Valley, a mile or so below the village towards Adams, 
are several hills like haystacks, say fifty feet high, and a perfect cone in 
some instances, resembling an Indian mound. Prof. Hitchcock says of 
them that, in the glacial period, these were brought down from the 
Hoosacs. In many places in the valley there are clear evidences of the 
work of the glacial period, and in the village, at Furnace Hill, the glacial 
scratches are plainly visible. One case near the little tunnel is pecu- 
liarly marked. 

To the north is Clarksburg, and the hills on the north boundary of the 
village, in the locality known as Houghtonville, are in that town. From 
this portion of the village a magnificent view is had down the valley to 
Adams. On the hills west of the village and on the top of which the 
reservoir of the village watei'-works is located, another excellent view of 
North Adams is obtained. Witt's Ledge, a stone quarry in the edge of 
the village, one of the prominent hills of the Taconic range, is a fine 
walk of ten minutes and opens an enchanting panorama below, while its 
geological formation is also a most interesting subject for the student. 

The Natural Bridge. 
Emptying into the east branch of the Hoosac a mile from the center, 
is Hudson's Brook, rising in Clarksburg, and vipon which stream is the 
great curiosity of Northern Berkshire, the Natural Bridge. This was 
the spot which entranced Hawthorne, who spent a long time in North 
Adams and whose " American Notes " brings into prominence many 
characters of the town in past yeai'S. This enlarged fissure, down 
through which the water rushes, is in white marble, discolored by time 
and the action of the water so that the stones are gray. A view of the 
bridge is given in this book. The depth of the fissure is at least sixty 
feet and at several points the stone almost closes over. The upper end of 
the chasm is very narrow, but it widens after the plunge of the stream and 
is accessible, forming a spacious chamber. The echoes are grand in the 
subterranean passage. There are numerous x>ools, and protruding spurs 
or rocks divide the stream, so that each fissure is almost a cave by itself. 
The stream once fell over a high precipice on the south, but, through 
11 



162 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 

chemical action, lias disintegrated the limestone heneath it, leaving two 
masses of rock connecting the sides and forming natural bridges, though 
the ujiper one is much broken. The lower one is arched and the stream 
runs 50 feet, below it, the average width of the brook being about 1.5 
feet. In times of low water, people walk beneath the bridge. A cave 
exists a little west of the top of the chasm, large enough to be entered with 
some trouble, and permitting one to stand erect in some places. The 
history of this discovery is that a man named Hudson, living in Clarks- 
burg, carrying home a deer and passing this spot, let it slip from his 
shoulder aud lost it down a hole into the cave. It is without doubt one 
of the most romantic spots and one of the rarest bits of the work of 
nature, in all Berkshii-e. It is within easy walking distance from the 
village. 

Points of Interest. 

Up on the Florida mountain east of the village some of the finest of 
views are obtainable. From this point the Rev. Washington Gladden 
received an inspiration which kindled his soul as he gazed on the en- 
chanted scene far below him. In a word, while the village below is un- 
attractive in broad avenues and shaded walks, and while there are no 
lawns and grounds and surroundings of the ideal " country seat," yet, 
from any eminence where the village is snuggling at your feet, you are 
struck with its unique situation, hidden away in the glens and dells. 

The Notch is an interesting part of the town, west of the village. The 
foot hills, Witt's Ledge and the other hill continuing south, are its 
eastern boundary and the mountains in the Taconic spur, its western. 
The Notch brook supplies the town with water, and the stream has 
upon it " The Cascade," where the mountain stream comes tumbling 
saucily along until it makes an abrupt plunge of about 40 feet into the 
abyss below. There is a deep gorge between the hills, with overhang- 
ing rocks covei'ed with moss and ferns, and here in the deep shade 
of the pines the situation is somber and romantic. In this range of foot 
hills tradition has it that there exists a cave, but of late years its exact 
location is not known. 

Business Character. 
There have been no old families to give the town a social reputation, 
and it has never been a resort for the summer visitors. It is too busy, 
and there is a hum in the air of the industry and push of the place. But 
the visitor will find the friendliness and the hospitality of the town won- 
derfully refreshing and cordial. The building of the Hoosac Tunnel, the 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 168 

greatest engineeriug feat of the kind in the country, gave the town a 
great start in a business way. The work, while altogether under the 
Hoosac Mountain in Florida and in part the other side, was nevertheless 
a North Adams affair, and the village reaped a substantial benefit from 
it. The tunnel, of wliich we give views and a sketch elsewhere, is 25,081 
feet — or four and three-quarter miles — long, through solid rock the entire 
distance. It has cost millions of money, and is the property of the State 
of Massachvisetts, together with the forty-four miles of road bed between 
the Vermont line and the Connecticut Eiver at Greenfield. 

North Adams is the greatest railroad center in Berkshire. From the 
south is the Pittsfield and North Adams branch of the Boston and Albany 
Railroad; from the east the Fitchburg Raih'oad; from the Connecticut 
Valley, or New Haven, is the New Haven and Northampton Railroad, 
which was extended from Northampton to North Adams, or, rather, the 
State Road at Conway, from which point its trains pass over the Troy 
and Greenfield Road (which is the name given to the State's road) to 
North Adams. From the west are also two lines of railway, running 
nearly parallel ; the Troy and Boston Railroad from Troy to Massachu- 
setts line with Vermont, and from there over the Troy and Greenfield 
Road to North Adams; the Boston, Hoosac Tunnel and Western Railway 
also connects with the Troy and Greenfield Road at the Massachusetts 
line, and is a lessee of the privilege of entering North Adams over the 
tracks of the Troy and Greenfield Railroad. A street railroad is also 
being built between North Adams and Adams, six miles, and it is to be 
put through some of the streets of the north village as far as the " Union " 
on the road to Clarksburg. 

Some Village Institutions. 
A few years ago S. A. Kemp gave to the town twenty acres of land, on 
which is a grove, on the hillside just east of the village, for a park, and 
every year the town is making a good appropriation for its improve- 
ment. A free library was established in 1884, now having about 8,000 
volumes, and a free reading room. A mile west of the village are the 
grounds of the Hoosac Valley Agricultural Society, with a fine half-mile 
track, where racing is often indulged in. The schools of North Adams 
are probably the best in Berkshire. As the result of a serious accident in 
the railroad yard in 1883, the citizens of the town subscribed liberally for 
the erection of a hospital, which occupies a place on the hill north of the 
village, and from its verandas a charming view of the landscape below 
is enjoyed. There are two social clubs — the North Adams Club, with a 



164 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 

membership embracing some of the prominent business men of the town, 
who have tastefully arranged rooms on Main street, and the Club Bruns- 
wick, composed of younger men, who occupy cozy quarters on Main 
street. The receptions given by the social organizations of the' town are 
noted, and at more than one of them the Governors of the State have 
graced the occasions with their presence. 

The pulpit of the Congregational church has been filled by men of 
wide reputation, among them being the Kev. Washington Gladden, who 
as a writer has made a national reputation ; Prof. Llewellyn Pratt, of the 
HartCord Theological Seminary, and the Kev. Theodore T. Hunger, now 
of New Haven, whose books have attracted much attention. 

The Drives. 

The narrow valleys in which North Adams is located makes it impossi- 
ble to have such numerous drives in the immediate vicinity as there are in 
many other towns. What there are are romantic, and make up in beauty , 
and variety of scenery what they lack in number. No town in Berkshire 
offers more rare views and glimpses of the valley and mountain, with far- 
reaching lookouts and look-offs, than North Adams ; for a new view, or a 
new panorama, as in the turning of a kaleidescope, is offered at almost 
every turn. 

The drive up the Notch road is romantic. This was the old route to 
Adams, and is one of the wildest in the county. The road in many 
places is exceedingly steep, and, running along the mountain side, above 
the valley, the villages are in plain sight away down below. This road is 
continued for six miles after leaving the Notch road proper, and comes 
out in Adams by the old Quaker church. In many places the trees over- 
hang the highway, making a delightful shade, and some abrupt turn in 
the road will open to view a most magnificent surprise of scenery below. 
The trip this way and back from Adams up the valley is about twelve miles. 
North Adams, seen below in the night from this road on the mountain, 
is beyond description. The drive east, from Main street at the Wilson 
House or Richmond House as starting points, through Union street, past 
the Freeman Print Works, through the Beaver, to Briggsville, following 
the east branch of the Hoosac, to Clarksburg, is a pleasant one, over 
a highway finely shaded. Continuing to Stamford and the Paradise 
Hotel, famous for its trout suppers, is an easy grade and a drive of about 
five miles. It is the most frequently taken of all the drives out of North 
Adams. Another drive, longer, but highly romantic, is to take the east 
road out of the village to the "Five Eoads," H miles, then turning 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 165 

directly to the left, and thence to Stamford, having the summit of 
the mountain for the highway and the valley below as the picture, return- 
ing from Stamford by the other route named, — a very good twelve-mile 
drive. In the east part of the village are many views oi the town. 

There are many walks of a few minutes that open wonderfully interest- 
ing views. To Witfs Ledge; to Thayer Pond, now the reservoir of the 
Freeman Manufacturing Company on the hill east of the village; to the 
Hospital and the road leading east from there to the Natural Bridge; up 
in Houghtonville on the high ground in Clarksburg, and many others, as 
fancy leads. All of them present different pictures, and it is peculiar of 
North Adams that its short walks brings out as many pretty views as 
a drive of two or three miles would afford in other places where the val- 
veys are wider. 

Tl'.e west shaft of the Tunnel, two miles southeast of the village is 
a romantic spot. The buildings are decayed, but the pile of debris is 
simply remarkable. Here are the works of Prof. Mowbray, who, during 
the building of the Tunnel, manufactured nitro-glycerine; the place has 
been the scene of tAvo or three serious and damaging explosions. It 
is easily reached with a carriage, and there is a good view of the vil- 
lage in the south valley and down towards Adams that is worth a trip 
there. The place is frequently resorted to. Near this place is the reser- 
voir of the Arnold Print Works, collecting the 600 gallons of water which 
flows every minute from the west portal of the Tunnel and conveying it in 
pipes to the railroad station and the mills farther down in the village. 
The west portal of the Tunnel is near and is worth a visit. Huge 
doors close the entrance to the Tunnel, when necessary, and there is a 
block signal station at this point. Another short drive and one fre- 
quently made is to go down Church street into a by-road leading to 
the west shaft, then turning north, following a valley with a view of the 
village to the left and the high range of mountains abruptly rising oppo- 
site, to Main street back to the village — a drive of four miles. Still 
another drive is to the central shaft of the Hoosac Tunnel in Florida. 
The view of the valley below wheji the summit of the mountain is reached 
beggars description. It makes a pretty ten-mile drive there and return. 

What is called the grandest drive of all, and occupying a day, is to 
go east over through Florida and its many romantic views, to Hoosac 
Tunnel Station in the Deerfield Valley; then going north, following the 
Deerfield Valley to Readsboro City, where are the extensive operations 
of the Messrs. Newton, who have built a narrow gauge road thereto; then 
to Hai-twellville, in Vermont, and to Stamford, returning direct to North 



166 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 

Adams, tlie trip being about 35 miles. This gives a good view of botli 
the Hoosac and the Deerfield Valleys. A complete list of drives vrill be 
found elsewhere, and mention of the numerous attractions in neigh- 
boring towns appears in the articles on those towns. 

TuE Brain and Brawn. 

The town has an excellent set of business men, and has sent out some 
good representatives. Hiram Sibley, the head of the great seed houses at 
Rochester and Chicago, was a North Adams boy. The handsome Episco- 
pal church in the village was the gift of Mrs. Sibley, also a native of 
North Adams. The Tinker family has been identified with the growth and 
prosperity of the town. The Blackintons have also added their energies 
to advance its temporal interests; the Braytons and the Richmond fami- 
lies have been identified with the town in many ways from its earliest 
days. George Millard was the pioneer of the shoe industry. James 
Marshall was pioneer in the business life of the town; Sylvander John- 
son's efforts succeeded in aiding the Tunnel work in its darkest hours. 
A. B. Wilson, the inventor of the Wheeler and Wilson sewing machine, 
went out of the town with his model under his arm and achieved fortune; 
the Wilson house is his local monument. 

The Hodges were among the pioneei's; there were Samuel Gaylord, 
A. W. Richardson, the Cadys, the Arnolds, for many years the print 
works' owners and men of character and stability; W. W. Freeman, the 
early manufacturer of calicoes; and Judge James T. Robinson, editor 
and orator. Senator Dawes began his practice and made his first politi- 
cal reputation in North Adams. In the busy life of this day there are 
the Gallups, A. C. Houghton, Col. John Bracewell; Prof. Mowbray, of 
nitro-glycerine fame, an expert chemist and noted electrician; O. A. 
Archer, of Blackinton ; Cashier Wilkinson, F. E. Swift, the Messrs. Cady, 
W. H. Gaylord, C. H. Cutting, Dr. George L. Rice, Postmaster Tyler, S. 
Proctor Thayer, a local writer and author. C. T. Sampson, the shoe 
manufacturer, was among the first to utilize Chinese labor in the time 
of unjust strikes, and it may be thrown in here, as a matter of history, 
that the first Chinese to become a naturalized citizen of this country 
was a resident of North Adams. G. H. B. Fisher, W. L. Brown, E. B. 
Penniman, Austin Bond, Mahager A. W. Locke and many others might be 
mentioned, who are taking a lively interest in the improvement of the 
village and in beautifying it. 

Fine Places for Summer Residence. 
A portion of the Richmond House was built in 1816. The principal 



THE BOOK OF BERKSUIRE. 



167 



hotels are the Wilson House, of wliich Foster E. Swift, who was also the 
landlord of the recently burned Greylock Hall at Williamstown, is propri- 
etor; the Richmond House, of which A. E. Richmond is the proprietor; 
and the Mansion House, of which Mr. Barnard is the proprietor. 

There are no summer homes in the town as yet; but within a few years 
several handsome dwellings have been built. The hillsides are dotted 
with cottages, and the slopes make sightly jilaces of residence. The ele- 
gant house of the late Sanford Blackinton, on Main street, was for many 
years considered one of the most complete in Berkshire. Then there are 
the houses of A. "W. Hodge, W. L. Brown, F. A. Walker, E. B. Penniman, 
F. S. Richardson, and some others, which are tasteful designs of archi- 
tecture. 

Asa whole, North Adams possesses many attractions, and the tourist 
will have much to repay him for the time he may spend in drives, and 
rambles, during the stay that he may make within the town and its 
neighborhood. 




ADAIflS. 

THE valley in wliich lies nestled the busy town of Adams is about 
four miles long, through which the south branch of the Hoosac 
runs quite swiftly. The south end of the valley is practically 
walled in, the Hoosac finding its way through a narrow defile, 
while high hills and ragged peaks almost entirely make a barrier of 
reck and wooded slope, which is nearly impassable. By its peculiar for- 
mation, the town abounds in hundreds of slopes and views. 

Greylock. 

To Adams belongs the honor of owning Greylock, the highest peak in 
the State and a monarch of all its fellows, — a point seen from every town 
in Berkshire, almost, and a grand, wild piece of mountain scenery. As 
in North Adams, the valley here is too narrow to admit of many drives in 
the town, excepting as one drives up and down the valley, or to the east- 
ward to Savoy, climbing the hills all the way up to the summit. There 
are, however, no finer views of valley scenery in all Berkshire than 
Adams presents. In the village of Adams one looks Greylock full in the 
eastern face, and, standing in the valley, the ascent looks to be not very 
tedious or difficult; but the reverse is the fact, and, while there are those 
who have made their way to the summit, 3,535 feet high, it is not an un- 
dertaking to be repeated. The description of this sightly place, and the 
views to be obtained there, are in another chapter, under the heading of 
" Greylock Park." 

The early settlers of Adams were largely from Rhode Island, — Baptists 
and Quakers, — from whom excellent citizens have descended. The old 
Quaker meeting house, the only one of the denomination in the county, 
yet stands, although its congregations have long since ceased to worship 
within its walls; but it is not allowed to go to decay, and will always be 
maintained as one of the landmarks of the town. It stands on an emi- 
nence west of the village. 

The Village. 
Adams, as a whole, has about 8,000 people ; but the village proper has 
only perhaps half that. In fact, it is a continuation of villages, known 
as Maple Grove, Adams, Renfrew, and Howlands, which is the station at 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 1(^9 

the Zylonite Works. The town has gas and good street lights, and has 
of late begun to pay attention to its sidewalks. The growth and pros- 
perity of Adams has been added to within the last decade more than 
almost any other town in Berkshire; new streets have been opened, new 
manufacturing industries added ; and so the villagers have been too busy 
to pay much attention to beautifying the village until recently. There 
are seven churches in the village, viz. : Congregational, Baptist, Meth- 
odist, two Catholic, Universalist, and Episcopal. The latter has a beau- 
tiful stone edifice, dedicated some three years ago, the gift of L. L. 
Brown, the wealthy paper manufacturer, near his own dwelling. A new 
town hall, costing some $50,000, was built a few years ago, and the upper 
story is one of the finest play houses in the county. The town boasts of 
two school buildings, which, for architectural beauty, are not eclipsed in 
Berkshire. The village has its bank, Masonic lodges of the various de- 
grees, and other secret organizations. A gymnasium is to be built this 
season, and the best citizens of the town maintain a Kifle Club, which 
has a reputation of more than local renown. The population, because of 
its manufacturing establishments, is mixed; but, as a rule, the town is 
exceptionally orderly, and it is in a great degree a village of homes. It 
is not, therefore, a resort as yet, for everybody is too busy to make it 
one. There are perhaps fewer gentlemen of leisure in Adams than 
almost any other town in the entire county. 

Sample Drives. 
The drives are many and fine. From the Quaker church, noi'th, is 
one of the wildest and most romantic drives in all Berkshire, following 
up the mountain side west of the village, and thence along the "Notch '' 
road to North Adams. The road is probably 1,000 feet above the 
valley, and the view in all directions is one of the rarest grandeur. 
Hills upon hills, and peaks on peaks, are spread out to view. This is a 
favor: te drive from Adams, on through the Notch above North 
Adams, and so on to Williamstown, leaving North Adams to the east. 
Another drive is to go east through Hoosac street, in the village, which 
is a little north of the center of the village, and go directly east, climb- 
ing the east range by an easy ascent to North Savoy. From that place, 
turning north through Florida to the village of that name, a fine view of 
the Deerfield Valley is obtained. Then returning westward to North 
Adams, and from there down the valley to Adams again, completes a 
popular drive of say twenty-five m'lcs. It is spoken of as an afternoon 
drive, especially in the autumn, when the frost has touched the foliage, 



170 tup: book of berksiiike. 

as most remarkably enchanting, and, if it can be taken as the sunset is 
about approaching, when the summit above North Adams is reached, it 
is said to add a fascination which nowhere else in Northern Berkshire 
can be obtained. A drive to Savoy Hollow, the location of Bowker's 
Hotel, is another popular seven-mile drive up the hills overlooking the 
village, and this is taken by the villagers and others a good deal, both in 
winter and in svimmer, for clam bakes, trout suppers, and social parties. 
On the road east of the Zylonite Works, towards the north line of the 
town, is also another fine drive and view. It is near the Eichmond farm, 
now the town poor farm. The writer remembers a genuine surprise he 
received at seeing such a beautiful view laid at his feet; for, as far south 
fls the eye could reach, there was a succession of rare bits of scenery, and 
northward the view is equally magnificent. It was all the more surpris- 
ing from the fact that the altitude, apparently, above the valley is not 
very considerable. 

One may take the highway a little Cast of the station at Cheshire Hai-- 
bor and drive along the east slope of the town, under the base of the 
range of hills and mountains there, with the village of Adams below, to 
North Adams, seven miles, with a^magnificent view of the valley all the 
way and the stream and the clustering villages many feet below, and en- 
joy a panorama all the way. Or he may start at Cheshire Harbor, turn- 
ing west a little and then north, in the little valley made, by the foot 
hills at his then right as he drives north, with the base of the Saddle 
Mountain range to the left, through a farming region, until he emerges 
in the village near the old Quaker church. Then if fancy dictates he 
may go on north over the romantic Notch road to North Adams, and 
have at his feet the busy valley again and an entirely different view. 
There are several fine views right in the village, for the high range of 
hills each side of the valley, make a thousand points of varied interest. 
A pretty drive is what is known as the "Pumpkin Hook" road, south 
on the east side, towards the Dry Brook and there to Cheshire, five miles. 

A TiiKiFTY Town. 
The extensive " Greylock" paper mills of the L. L. Brown Paper Com- 
pany are situated in this town, with an auxiliary mill at West Cumming- 
ton, 12 miles away. The mills have long been some of the government 
paper contract mills and the company has the only mill for producing 
hand made papers in the United States. L. L. Brown was the first 
manufacturer in the country to successfully make a specialty of ledger 
and record papers. Beginning in 1850, he soon gained for his paper a 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. J^J 



reputation second to none in the world. Mr. Brown lias had valuable 
aid from his treasurer, T. A. Mole, one of the most genial paper manu- 
facturers in the country. The extensive gingham mills of the Renfrew 
Manufactiiring Company are situated in the north part of the village 
proper; the Plunkett Manufacturing Company and W. B. C. Plunkett& 
Sons are large manufacturers of warps besides gingham fabrics at Grey- 
lock. Near the north line of the town has grown up within a few years one 
of the greatest industries of Berkshire, the manufacture of zylonite, and 
a village has grown up about it of unique and tasteful cottages, a model 
in every way. Besides Mr. Brown and his son-in-law, Emil Ki^jper, 
several New York gentlemen are interested in the enterprise, and ar- 
tesian wells of great depth have been sunk, bringing up water of ex- 
treme purity. The pay rolls of Adams amount to millions of dollars 
annually, and the manufacturers are proverbially helpful to their em- 
ployes in assisting them to homes and caring for their interests. 

The Town's Ancestry and Descendants. 
The town has had a good ancesti-y. The Uptons were an old Quaker 
family, of which Daniel Upton, now a prominent resident, is a good rep- 
resentative. The Anthonys also were an old family, and Susan B. An- 
thony, the well known advocate of the rights of women, was a native of 
Adams. The Fisk family, of which James Fisk, Jr., was a member also 
lived early in the town. The Bowermans, of which are Samuel W. 
Bowerman of Pittsfield and other wealthy members in New York city, 
were an old family; the Almys of Salem came from Adams. The How- 
lands settled in that portion of the town now near the northern border 
and have assisted in giving a name and character to the town. The Wil- 
martlis were a good family and have descendants in Adams yet; there 
was a large prominent family of the Jenks name, and the Eichmonds 
and Deans were of the early families. So, as the years have come 
and gone Adams has had families and men who have sought to give it a 
business name and a good record for the future to look back upon. 
William C. Plunkett, a member of the family prominent in other pax'ts 
of Berkshire, came to Adams a young man of limited means, but of 
great executive ability and amassed a fortune, gave the town a great 
deal of its thrift and died only a few years ago at a ripe old age, and his 
sons, now here in business are maintaining the honor of the family. 
Governor George N. Briggs, whom all Berkshire speaks of reverently 
for his goodness of heart and purity of life, was born in Adams. The 
Wheelers were a family who have left an impression for good on the 



^72 THE BOOK OF BEKKSIIIRE. 

town. William Pollock of Pittsfiekl, whose country seat was the finest 
in the county, made much of his fortune in Adams and was the founder 
of the Renfrew Manufacturing Company. The Moles, several brothers, 
are active and substantial citizens of the town. James Pvenfrew, a 
nephew of Mr. Pollock, of Scotch birth, is also a prominent citizen and 
one of the Renfrew Company's busiest and most energetic stockholders 
and managers. The Adamses, the Phillipses, H. T. Bliss, Cashier "Wel- 
lington and others, are now among the active men of Adams. 

There are no special summer homes in Adams; the town is too much 
of a manufacturing center and its industries are too much in the village 
to admit of it here, but, outside the village the situations for country 
seats are endless and summer visitors would live in a constant round of 
delights. Within a few years there has been an advance in permanent 
homes of architectural beauty and the hillsides scattered all through 
the town aftord rare sites for them. The home of L. L. Brown, while 
unpretentious, is nevertheless a model, and his greenhouses are unex- 
celled, with possibly one exception, in the county. The Plunkett family 
home is also cozily situated in the village and has a home-like air. 
James Renfrew has built within a few years a large cottage of unique 
architecture on one of the slopes in the east part of the village which 
has one of the most commanding lookouts of the valley to be found in the 
village. The cottage of Mrs. Bliss, daughter of Daniel Upton, is a tasteful 
bit of architecture and well situated. A. B. Mole's new dwelling on the 
Savoy road and overlooking the village, is a fine addition to the town, 
and there are several other dwellings especially on the hill to the 
south, which are really artistic and model homes. The village has 
taken a new start in its homes recently and the move is creditable. 
The old Howland homestead, which is plainly seen from the railway 
at Rowland's station to the west, has been entirely remodeled 
within a few years and is the home of Emil Kipper, of the Zylonite 
Company. The exterior, while attractive. Is not to be compared to the 
interior decoi'ations, which are after the Egyptian style, largely, with 
choice furnishings, many of them from Cairo and Turkey. 

We cannot leave Adams withovtt a parting glance at Greylock. The 
ascent is now from the north towards Williamstown or North Adams. 
The road in ISTorth Adams, known as the Notch road, is utilized as a 
part of the new highway which was built to the summit in 1885. From 
the terminus of this Notch road, a new highway has been made, bridges 
have been constructed across the little mountain sti-eams, so that it is a 
comparatively easy grade all the way to the summit, 8 or 10 miles. 



ORHVIvOCK PARK. 

TO Berkshire and the town of Adams is accorded the king of the 
New England mountains, outside of the White Mountains — 
Greylock, the highest point in Massachusetts, 3,535 feet above 
sea level, and 2,800 feet above the valley of the Hoosac, at its 
base. Poets and writers have vied with each other, in song 
and sketch in praise of Greylock, a name applied to the peak from its 
resemblance to the grey locks of an old man, when the stern old summit 
is crowned with the frosts of winter or late autumn. The range or 
cluster, of which Greylock peak is the center and crowning feature, has 
six or seven distinct points of prominence, all within the space of about 
seven miles in the towns of Adams, Williamstown and North Adams, 
with a spur thrown off from the south through Cheshire, New Ashford 
and Lanesboro and ending in a slight hill in Pittsfield. The former 
name of the peak, taken in connection with the point next south, was 
Saddle Back, so named from its resemblance to a saddle, but the name 
Greylock, a fit api^ellation, as one sees it when the frosts of winter 
are crowning its summit, with its dome-like toj? often far above the 
clouds, is the poetic title and one that gives it significance and promi- 
nence the country over. Greylock Park is its new christening, now that 
imi^rovements have been begun upon its summit and the approach thereto. 
If Greylock stood alone in the center of a great plain, or even if the other 
and somewhat lesser mountains were carried away, its gigantic height 
would be more impressive; but the fellows of Greylock detract a good 
deal from its real glory, and one who stands in the village of Adams and 
looks fully into the breast of the monster pile, and then to the summit 
hardly realizes that he i^ gazing upward 2,800 feet. Its beauties and its 
attractions, its views and its morning panorama of peaks on peaks, and 
slee^jing valleys and peaceful lakelets — Greylock by the early sunrise or 
the deepening sunset — all these have been woven into pleasant sketch, 
or poetic strain by pens like Fanny Kemble's, Catherine Sedgwick's,^ 
President Hitchcock's, Washington Gladden' s, "Godfrey Greylock' s," 
and many others. There is hardly a jjoint in Berkshire from which 
Greylock cannot be seen, and its form is always discernable and recogni- 
zable from its graceful slope to the east. The nearer views of it are 



174 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 

grander yet, and from those points where one looks directly into his 
stern old face, as from above Adams, Windsor, or Peru, there steals over 
the beholder a sense of awe and of majesty. 

It always seems as if Greylock stood as a silent, yet ever watchful sen- 
tinel of the north portal of Berkshire and the valley below, conscious of 
Tiis grandeur, and not a little proud of his few hundred feet of elevation 
more than his fellows on either side. One who rides by Greylock on the 
cars through Adams, and takes a good look upon its forest-covered side, 
with the gray frost lingering on the spruces which run up the eastern 
slope almost to the summit, can well agree with the application of the 
name, which many have asked the reason for, as on a clear winter morning 
it fairly glistens in the sunlight. It is cold, forbidding and stern except 
in summer, when its shaded sides invite rest and repose ; and its summit, 
even from a distance, inspires one with the belief that Greylock must, 
irom the very nature of things, be a most charming and sightly retreat. 
It is strange, however, that so few of the dwellers in Berkshire have 
'been to the summit of Greylock and enjoyed for themselves the magnif- 
icent view here spread out on every hand. The narrow valley at its 
base seems cramped by the Saddle Back range on the west and the 
Green Mountains on the east; but when the summit is reached, there 
seems such a sense of relief; there is more "elbow room," as it were, 
while the eye feasts until weary on new scenes and new beauties ; yet a 
day's sight leaves many, many interesting views yet untouched. It 
would take a week to analyze and digest all of them satisfactorily. 

Greylock Park Association. 
Thei-e are three ways of reaching Greylock; one west from the village 
of Adams, bearing a little north, and climbing directly up the sides, 
another through a portion of Cheshire, and the south part of Adams, fol- 
lowing a wood road, for some distance and then leaving teams and 
climbing for about two miles to the summit; the third was until recently 
by the way of the Notch, in North Adams, then walking the rest of 
the distance, through an easier grade, and yet a longer tramp, to the sum- 
mit, from the northward. All these were hard jaunts, and that probably 
accounts for the fact that so few have ever seen the wonders of the realm 
round about from this lofty height. In 1885, the long-cherished hope of 
a road to the svimmit of the mountain crystallized into action, and a num- 
ber of gentlemen is Northern Berkshire associated themselves together 
under the title of " The Greylock Park Association," and have set about 
the improvement of the mountain summit, and also built a highway from 



THE BOOK OF BEKKSHIRE. 175 

North Adams. This was accomplished in September and October, 1885. 
When the contemplated improvements are finished, Greylock will he a 
strong rival to other mountain top resorts, and one of the most popular 
places in Berkshire. 

The Greylock Park Association is composed of several enterijrising 
gentlemen, and at their last annual meeting in May, 188(3, the following 
officers were chosen: President, W. L. Brown ; vice president, W. B. 
Plunkett ; clerk, S. Proctor Thayer; ti-easurer, W. W.Butler; directors, 
W. L. Brown, A. C. Houghton, James II. Flagg, George B. Perry, Austin 
Bond, treasurer of the State Railroad, A. W. Locke, W. B. Plunkett, J. 
C. Chalmers, of tlie Renfrew Manufacturing Company, H. H. Wellington, 
cashier of the National Bank of Adams, Franklin Carter, President of 
Williams College, and J. M. Waterman. An act of the legislature has 
been granted, authorizing the association to have a capital stock of 
$50,000, and it is authorized to hold GOO acres of land on the mountain. 
Lieutenant-Governor Ames has contributed $250 to the work. Under 
the association's strong membership the work done in 1885 will be 
still further augmented by many improvements the jsresent year and in 
the years to come. The fii'st work of the association was in building the 
road, which has been comiileted at a cost of about $4,000. 

Ascending the Mountain. 

With North Adams as a starting point, we begin the ascent. We fol- 
low the highway towards Braytonville, on the Williamstown road, a little 
way, and turn to the left and west, on the Notch road, as far as Mr. 
Walden's, where the new road of the association begins, three miles 
from North Adams. This Notch road is also intersected by the road from 
Williamstown, as part of the old road to Adams, or the '"Shelf road" 
overlooking North Adams. From Mr. Walden's house, the Greylock 
road passes through the hitherto unbroken forests, five miles farther, to 
the summit. The grade is easy all the way; there are no steep ascents, 
for the building of the road has been of the most thorough character. 
The association has taken a strip five rods wide all the way through the 
forest, in order that the shade may be maintained, and also that adjoin- 
ing land owners, who may wish to cut their timber, cannot encroach upon 
the drive. Two miles up the mountain from Walden's, we cross Money 
Brook over a strong bridge. 

The Hoppeb. 

Near here is the famous Hopper, down into which from the top one 
may look a thousand feet, its sides, steep and rugged, overhung with 



176 TIIK BOOK OF BEKKSHIRE, 

shrubs and trees and vines.* The woods at this point in the highway are 
to be cleared away, so that tourists may obtain a view of this great abyss 
to p:reater advantajje. Several slides have occurred on the slopes of the 
Hopper, one of them l.tiOO feet in length. The most remarkable one of 
all was in 1784, when a dwelling house was swept away, though the in- 
mates escaped. 

At the southern end of the narrowing Notch, where it is narrowest, 
is the Bellows Pipe, through which the lierce winds of our wild northern 
storms bellow and rage in concentrated fury. In describing the Hopper, 
J. E. A. Smith writes: " Here you will find yourself surrounded by four 
precipitous mountain walls, over a thousand feet in height. On these 
rough and shaggy sides, you will see here huge and bare cliffs, tliere 
ragged trees clinging to steep ascents and scanty soil, and there patches 
of richer wood, but still of precarious foothold; here the broad path of 
the land slide, there its mighty ruins. Vastness and desolation will be 
everywhere about you, and, if you can rid jourself of that disennobliug 
association with a mill hopper, you will feel that this great aby><s in 
Greylock is both terrific and sublime.'' 

Pausing fok a Foretaste. 
Xear Money Brook is " Wilbur's Clearing," as it is called, and we stop 
for a short time to breathe and to take a look at the view which is begin- 
ning to be a slight foretaste oi the summits. It is such a superb scene to 
the north and west! Williamstown and the college are sleeping down in 
the valley, and, away beyond, are the Taconics on the one hand, the 
Green Mountains to the northeast, and we follow the Hoosac as it winds 
through the meadows and the pass towards Pownal, and so on its way 
until it is lost like a thread in the distance. North Adams is seen occa- 
sionally below, and a background for miles is the Hoosac range, to the 
cast of the village, and away on to Clarksburg and Stamford. Even this 
view, only part way uji the mountain side, is almost sutticient to take the 
breath away, and creates a desire to linger on the scene before us. 
Three miles more of easy riding, — eight miles from Nortli Adams, for a 
good hoi'se easily carries two in a buggy all the way with little eft'ort, — 
and. emerging from the woods into an open space, we are at the very 
summit of Greylock. The view bursts ui)on the vision in all its grandeur 
on a clear day, and we are glad now that we did not linger to merely 
lunch on the more limited view from the "Clearing." three miles below, 
but came at once to partake of the genuine feast offered on the summit 
of this lofty, stern old peak. 



THE BOOK OF BEUKSniRE. 177 

The " Near View." 

The pen cannot describe the scene; for over 100 miles in all directions, 
the view is laid out before the beholdei'. Five states can be looked into 
with ease, — Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire, Connecticut, and 
New York. It is claimed that with a strong glass the shipping in New 
York harbor can be seen with ease. The " near view " down below us en- 
chanted us more at first ; there was an irresistible desire to see from whence, 
and to where, we had come since we left the busy village two hours before, 
and we looked down from a perch, as it were ; for the valley seemed only a 
little way off, and yet so small and insignificant. The Hoosac River was 
flowing like a silver thread in the bright sunlight through the valley, with 
graceful, serpentine curves. We could follow it from its very source now; 
in fact, both sources of the two branches, — one creeping lazily through the 
meadows from Cheshire through Adams, and so along to North Adams; 
the north branch, from its mountain ])ond in Stamford, rushing and 
tumbling down the hillside and joining its sister stream in North Adams, 
and both tripping along merrily through Williamstown and on to the 
west in its course to the Hudson. 

Like a bird in mid-heaven, we looked down at Adams, now a little, 
diminutive village, as it were, and yet apparently only a little way 
olT. To the north of us, in this near view, was Williamstown, — a picture 
of quiet contentment as it sat with the great hills all about her and the 
college buildings the center of the amphitheatre. To the west, we looked 
down into the little hamlet of New Ashford, and then on beyond that to 
the other valley in New York State, apparently only a stone's throw 
away. Southward lay Cheshire village, so near as almost to leave the 
impi-ession for a moment that we could speak to the pigmy of a man we 
saw somewhere near it. Pittsfield, with its lakes and encircling hills 
and mountain tops farther on, was in easy sight, its spires shimmering in 
the sun, and the village lying in the center of a plain, which looked even 
larger than we had imagined. 

This was the "near view" that we instinctively longed to take first. 
Then, as we ascended we looked out in each direction in successive order, 
gradually extending it, as we took in peak after peak and point after point, 
with the " near view " as the beginning, in each i>oint of the compass. The 
mountain tops rolled out before us as the waves of the ocean come, one 
by one, as we allowed the eye to take them in. To the north were num- 
berless i^oints, with villages occasionally, valleys whose depths we could 
not see, and a clear range of the Green Mountains for at least thirty 
miles, or until the eye could see no longer. 
12 



178 THE nooK of Berkshire. 

A Far Sweep of Vision. 
But we get tired of looking. That is the trouble of Greylock ; and still 
you cannot rest, for the temi^tation is too strong for "just one more look.'' 
Northwestward, the Adirondacks are plainly seen in their prominent 
points, and from Greylock and one of their summits the surveyors in the 
United States coast survey, a few years ago, signaled each other by flash- 
lights in the process of their work. To the east are Mouadnock, in New 
Hampshire, and Wachusett, in plain view, and scores of smaller points, 
while Mounts Tom and Holyoke, in the Connecticut Valley, are appa- 
rently but a little more than neighbors from where we stand. Southward 
the eye takes in the Dome of the Taconics, the southern sentinel of Berk- 
shire, and a fellow guard with Greylock of the two portals of the county. 
The whole space between is literally sprinkled with mountains and hill- 
tops, and with lakelet gems on every hand reflecting them in the sun- 
light. The prettiest view to many minds is that southward covering the 
entire length of the county, and taking in most of the " grand old hills of 
Berkshire." The eye does not stop with the Dome, but wanders farther 
on into Connecticut; and, westward of the southern views, takes in the 
Catskills. The beholder realizes what human weakness is when he longs 
for the words that shall express the volumes of thought and emotions 
that swell his brain and heart. He is filled with delight, with awe, with 
reverence, at the outlook, which inspires him with a grander idea of 
Creation and of God. Here is true sublimity, and its emotion, mingled 
wiih numerous others, ill defined but powerful, moves the observer to 
the very depths and impresses him with the majesty of Nature. 

Vastness, Beauty and Sublimity. 
Of the view from this mountain, Prof. Hitchcock says : " I know of no 
place where the mind is so forcibly impressed by the idea of vastness, and 
even of immensity, as when the eye ranges abroad from this eminence. 
1 have rarely, if ever, experienced such a pleasing change from the emo- 
tion of beauty to that of sublimity, as at this spot. The moment one 
fixes his eye upon the valley of Williamstown, he cannot but exclaim. 
' how beautiful ! ' But ere he is aware of it, his eye is following up and 
onward the vast mountain slopes; and, in the far oft' horizon, he beholds 
intervening ridge after ridge, peering above one another, until they are 
lost in the distance ; and unconsciously he finds his heart swelling with the 
emotions of sublimity; nor can the soul of piety cease its musings here, 
initil the tribute of reverence has been paid to that Eternal Power who 
has driven asunder these everlasting mountains." 



the book of beekshike. 179 

Thokeau Above the Clouds. 
A sunrise view is particularly transporting. The lighting up of this great 
panorama, as on the sunbeams come, to open all this grandeur gradually 
to view, is not only inspiring, but sublime. Of this scene, Thoreau 
breaks forth into the most ravishing descriptions as the sum of all 
his sight-seeing and the fruition of more than his fancy had pictured. " I 
was up early," he writes, " and perched upon the top of the tower to see 
the day break. As the light increased, I discovered around me an ocean 
of mist, which reached up by chance exactly to the base of the tower, and 
shut out eveiy vestige of the earth, while I was left floating ou this 
fragment of the wreck of a world, — on my carved plank in cloud-land, 
a situation which it required no aid from the imagination to render im- 
pressive. There was not a crevice left through which the trivial places 
we name — Massachusetts, Vermont and New York — could be seen. All 
around me was spread for a hundred miles, on every side, an undulating 
country of clouds. It was such a country as we might see in dreams, 
with all the delights of Paradise. When the sun began to rise on this 
pure world, I found myself a dweller in the dazzling halls of Aurora, — into 
which poets have had but a partial glance over the Eastern hills, — drift- 
ing among the saffron-colored clouds, and playing with the rosy fingers of 
the Dawn, in the very path of the Sun's chariot, and sprinkled with its 
dewy dust, enjoying the benignant smile, and, near at hand, the far darting 
glances of the god. The inhabitants of Earth behold commonly but the 
dark and shadowy underside of heaven's pavement; it is only when at a 
favorable angle of the horizon, morning and evening, that some faint 
streaks of the rich lining of the clouds are revealed. But my muse 
would fail to convey an impression of the gorgeous tapestry by which I 
was surrounded, such as men see faintly reflected afar oft' in the chambers 
of the east. Here, as ou Earth, I saw the gracious god 

' Flatter the mountain tops with sovereign eye, * * * 
Gilding pale streams with heavenly alchemy.' " 

When Mr. Thoreau descended the mountain he found himself in the 
region of clouds and drizzling rain, though he had previously had no 
suspicion of rain. 

Gbeylock's Futuke. 

To make this mountain more of a resort, the Park Association has be- 
gun the improvements now so well under way. The present season it is 
intended to make the road a better one; to put up buildings on the sum- 
mit for the entertainment of parties desiring to remain over night or 



180 TlIK BOOK OF BERKSHIKE. 

even longer, but especially for the sunrise view ; to build an observatory 
(one was put up here a few years ago by Williams College, but it was 
burned), so that the view, now obstructed, of the nearer things may not 
be hidden by the forest; water will be brought to the summit, and many 
other improvements made. Already about $13,000 have been raised and 
will be expended. In time, cottages will be erected, and there is talk 
that some day in the near future a road from Adams will also be built, 
so that tourists may make the ascent by one drive and the descent by 
the other. 

The mountain side is full of interesting a iews and charming, i-ugged 
bits of scenery. The Hopper is of itself a study, and the Cascade is also 
on this route. The return trip from the mountain summit to the Wilson 
House in North Adams can easily be made in an hour and fifteen 
minutes, though three may well be occupied in the leisurely ascent. 
Such wonderful, sublime and soul-satisfying views are the glory of 
Berkshire, for, as a means of bringing one into contact with the gran- 
deur as well as the repose of nature, Greylock has no equal; while 
its attractions, enhanced by the art of man, for the accommodation of 
those who seek its retreat, will make it in time the great object of 
visitation in all the "Berkshire Hills." 



IITE sightly location at "Fernside," the pure mountain air and 
water, the good table and the various accommodations of the 
l)lace attract many summer and autumn guests every year. 
The elevation of the eight houses, barns and many outbuildings 
at'Ternside" is 1,160 feet above the ocean; that of the highest point on the 
property, 1,900 feet; the mountain some distance back is 2,200 feet high. 
These mountains are easily accessible. "Fernside" lies on the southern, 
steep slope of the narrow Hop Brook Valley in Tyringham, three miles 
from the railway at South Lee, and but a short distance from the Ty- 
ringham post-office. The scenery from the premises is some of Berk- 
shii-e's best. Prof. Gildersleeve of Johns Hopkins University, says that 
this is the only place he was ever in where he covild walk all day and 
find a new and charming view every live minutes. This may, indeed, be 
true. After enjoying the sights near the buildings, one is ambitious to 
climb the mountain to the southward and westward. A good path has 
been prepared through bushes and woodland and over pastures, and a 
delightful walk it is to follow its easy ascent. 

The Shakers. 
As early as 1792 a society of Shakers was organized in Tyringham, 
consisting of nine members at first. They purchased a large tract of 
land and made two settlements — one at " Fernside," and the other half 
a mile west. The community soon numbered 100 and once it contained 
185, and until after the middle of the present century it was very fiourish- 
ing; but, in 1858, 23 of their nimiber ran away at one time, and in 1874 their 
number was so reduced that they sold their property in Tyringham and 
joioed the communities at Hancock, Enfield and New Lebanon. 

Mount Horeb. 
The summit of the first mountain is bald and is covered with grass; 
there, the prospect is beautiful, magnificent, imposing, charming — 
everything. The place was selected for their "Horeb" by the Shakers 
in 1844. They received the suggestion from Isaiah ii-2: "And it shall 
come to pass in the last days, that the mountain of the Lord's house 
shall be established in the top of the mountains and shall be exalted 



182 



THE BOOK OF BEKKSIIIKE. 




"Fernside," Tyringham. 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 183 

above the hills, and all nations shall flow unto it." These places were 
selected under the supposed influence of divine messengers from Heaven. 
Every Shaker society in the land has its Mount. When the Shakers, 
then living at "Fernside," desired to locate their Mount, a dozen or 
more set out one day and stopped where the controlling spirit com- 
manded them to stop, and that place was the mountain we have men- 
tioned. There they cleared a small jiiece of ground and built a fence 
around it and an inner fence ai'ound the spiritual fount, and erected a 
mirble monument, with an engraven message on both sides purporting 
to come from God, himself, warning all to keep sacred the grounds and 
never desecrate them. The Shakers held services there for several 
years and finally discontinued them, after which the warning on the 
monument was violated and it was carried away piecemeal for relics. 
The base stone is now left, somewhat mutilated in breaking off 
mementoes. The Shaker burying ground is also on the premises. The 
stones lie flat on the graves after the Moravian fashion. The oldest 
is dated 1793. 

Dr. Jones's "Fernside." 

The Shakers' original building was erected in 1776, but was torn down 
in 1881. An old building, still standing and now used as a shop, is over 
100 years old. The house built next was a brick one, put up in 1823, as 
indicated by a tablet of marble with the date chiseled in it. The Shakers 
were running out, and they left in 1875, selling the buildings and about 
1,200 acres of land to Dr. Joseph Jones, of Honesdale, Pa., who is the 
present proprietor, looking after the comforts of his guests with unre- 
mitting attention. 

Among his guests have been the following: The Rev. Dr. James Mason 
Knox, Bristol, Pa.; Mrs. N. P. Willis, widow of the poet; Prof. H. D. 
Noyes, John J. Wood, Charles D. ISTeufville, J. Evarts Tracy, E. Yer- 
milye, all of New York; W. H. Matthews, New Orleans; Prof. Edward 
S. Doubleday, Brooklyn; E. Smith Kelly, Philadelphia; H. J. Hayns- 
worth, Albany; Prof. H. Rowland, of Johns Hopkins University. 

The outlook from the buildings, or from almost any portion of the 
farm, is exceedingly fine. The spires of Lee and Lenox rise far to the 
north, with dreamy blue hills in the distance. Towards the east at your 
feet, (for you are high up on a breezy summit, from which you can look 
complacently down on the morning fogs) lies a broad, fertile plain 
stretching away towards the north as far as Lee. Towards the south- 
east three-quarters of a mile away, and hidden by a round, bald-headed 
hill called the Cobble, the village of Tyringham is snugly nestled in t'.ie 



184 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 



valley. The air is delightfully cool and refreshing; in the warmest sea- 
sous aud at all times of the day, a breeze is constantly perceptible. 

Fine drives abound on every hand, through Lenox, Stockbridge, Lee, 
and Great Barrington. The road from Monterey shows a magnificent 
view from the top of the mountain. The walks are unlimited all over 
the mountain and valley, exposing ever changing views of the highest 
charms. " Fernside " has many visitors who come from the neighbor- 
ing towns to get the delightful rids and see the extraordinary scenery. 

In Tyringham village there are a few houses where boarders are taken 
in the summer amid surroundings of no common order. Stage leaves 
Tyringham 3 :45 p. M. ; Lee, 2 :.30 p. m. 




i 



NE'W I9IARI.BORO. 

SECLUDED, quiet and healthful, New Marlboro village is situated 
at an elevation of 1,470 feet above the sea. The whole North 
Parish, as this village and its neighborhood are sometimes called, 
is an elevated plateau of more than a thousand acres, with rims 
of higher hills around portions of the northern and eastern 
horizon, while off to the south and southwest and northwest are miles 
of hill and valley, woodland and meadow, with mountains rising one 
above another in the distance, all together forming one of the grandest 
panoramas that even Southern Berkshire can boast. To the southeast, 
as one looks from near the South Berkshire House, is the pretty little 
village of Southlield, perched on a mountain terrace and half shut in by 
wooded hill. 

The village people have begun to give portions of their houses to sum- 
mer guests, but the principal accommodations are given at the South 
Berkshire House of I. N. Tuttle, who keeps about 1.50 people. This vil- 
lage was first made a summer resort by Mr. Tuttle in 1878 and he since 
obtained possession of the South Berkshire Institute buildings, after the 
school was abandoned. The boarders at Mr. Tuttle' s find a phase of the 
best country life, and they value it particularly for their children, who 
have a large area of clean ground to play upon, where their noise is not 
annoying. The boarders pass time in many agreeable ways suitable to 
their surroundings, in outdoor life, in games, dancing, theatricals, etc. 
The music rooms of the Institute open into each other en suite, afford 
ample room for indoor entertainment, and the school-room has been 
provided with a permanent stage, curtaia, etc., for amateur theatricals. 
Picnics and drives around the wild and picturesque country are had 
frequently, and fishing and hunting receive the attention of their devo- 
tees. Four sets of lawn tennis are provided by Mr. Tuttle and there is 
room for all of them at once in the village park, as well as room for two 
sets on the Institute grounds. 

In 1881 Marvin Chapin, proprietor of the Massasoit House in Spring- 
field, was driving over the hills in Southern Berkshire and stopped at 
Mr. Tuttle's with the intention of staying only one night and then re- 
suming his journey. He was so pleased with the place that he remained 



186 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 

eight clays and came again next year with his family and stayed several 
weeks. Seth H. Moseley, ijroprietor of the New Haven House in New 
Haven, Ct., came along in a precisely similar way, — discovered the house 
by accident, as it were, tarried a few days and came again the next year. 
The proprietors of these famous hotels now stay at Mr. Tuttle's every 
summer. A large number of Mr. Tuttle's guests come year after year; 
among them are the following: John L. Drummond, C. E. Mallor, E. 
Major, Mrs. M. A. White, H. Carter, all of New York ; H. B. Vander- 
vere, Aug. Colson, Chris. Joost, all of Brooklyn; Frank A. Monson, 
New Haven, Conn.; F. W. Keith, D. H. Clark, both of Stamford, Conn.; 
Judge Turner, New London, Conn. 

Natural Ob.jects of Interest. 

The exceedingly interesting di'ives around New Marlboro are nu- 
merous. Lake Buel, situated partly in the northwestern corner of the 
town oi to 5 miles distant, according to whether one goes t) Gibson's or 
Turner's, is a delightful lake, a mile and a half long, where the accom- 
modations are ample for every purpose. 

Lake Garfield in Monterey, a little larger than Lake Buel, is 5 miles 
distant, and there visitors are well provided for. 

The Otis Reservoir, the lai'gest natural lake in the county, is 11 miles 
away, and a lovely lake it is, too. 

The Cat Hole in the southwestern part of the town, about three miles 
northeast of Clayton, is a natural cave of several chambers. The de- 
scent is rather difficult, and few persons but boys would care to go 
into it in the present condition of its entrance. 

Campbell's Falls. 

In the south part of the town on the state line, about three miles east 
of Clayton, are Campbell's Falls, where the Whiting Eiver pours about 
80 feet down rocks, in an almost perpendicular fall. Above the falls are 
numerous cascades where the stream flows through a dark, wild ravine, 
and below is a gorge walled in by steep, wooded and rocky mountain 
sides, seven or eight hundred feet high. The falls are the resort of many 
picnic parties. A saw mill used to be on the rocks above the falls and 
from its carriage, which was made to slide out over the abyss, a little 
girl once fell to the bottom, a distance of about 95 feet, but she survived 
and lived to be over 90 years old. 

In the Umpachene Falls, where the Umpachene stream joins the Kon- 
kapot, a little below Mill River on the road to Clayton, the water de- 



THE BOOK OF BEEKSHIRE. 



187 




"Gibson's Landing," Lake Buel. 



188 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIKE. 

scends over quartz rock by two leaps, to a depth of about 30 feet, the 
upper cataract being about 10 feet. Though there is nothing striking 
about these falls, they are an interesting natural object. 

Eastward of New Marlboro in Sandisfield and Otis is a sparsely settled 
country where the Green Mountains are divided by deep gorges and 
wild streams, and covered with forests. 

Tipping Rock. 

Tipping Rock, two miles off, a little below Southfield village, is a 
gi'eat curiosity. A huge boulder, weighing 40 tons was left here by the 
retreating glacier of the ice age, on the bed rock on the summit of a low 
hill, where the stranger has ever since abided, so well balanced that the 
strength of one finger can rock the huge mass, yet many oxen could not 
overturn it. There are but few of these boulders in the world. 

Favorite excursions outside of the town are to Stockbridge, Lenox, 
Great Barrington, Monument Mountain, Bashbish and the Dome. 

The autumn foliage in New Marlboro is gorgeous, as may be under- 
stood from the following description by a resident: " The grand pano- 
rama is now spread before us in all its magic beauty; north, south, east 
and west it is the same wonderful, ilaming, shading, rioting of color; 
every maple blazing at top with tint of scarlet or orange, every ash tree 
turned from green to straw color, every birch tree shimmering and 
quivering in the sun, as if golden beads were strung upon its branches; 
sumachs turned into ladders of fire; poplars marked and spotted with 
vermilion; not a single tree left of solid green, except the pines, firs and 
hemlocks, which look darker and greener than ever by contrast with the 
masses of Hashing color." 

In an old brass foundry blacksmith shop, that was situated on the 
eastern edge of the village on the stream, Elihu Burritt worked over an 
anvil two or three years about 1833. 

New Marlboro is reached from Great Barrington, 9 miles distant, every 
day except Sunday by a stage that leaves at 1 :30 p, m. Stage leaves 
New Marlboro at 7 :30 a. m. 

Mill Rivek. 
Mill River is a village lying three miles to the southwest in a narrow 
valley through which the Konkapot flows, S miles from Great Barrington, 
from which place a daily stage leaves at 1 :30, except on Sundays. A 
few summer boarders are kept in this village at the hotel and .at 
private houses. 



THE BOOK OF BEEKSHIRE. 



189 



Clayton. 
Clayton, in the southwest corner of the town, is 2^ miles from the 
Ashley Falls station of the Housatonic railroad, and is a place that city 
people would find delightful for summer residence. Here are the China 
Clay Works of Robert L. Taft, where a high quality of clay is mined 
and prepared for the use of pajjer makers in giving paper a finish, for 
making fine crockery, vulcanizing rubber, making "pure lead" paints, 
soap, face powder, fire bricks, lead ijencils, crayons, and for kalsomiu- 
ing. Mr. Taft's " Elm Brook Farm," is a fine one of 600 acres, 400 of 
which are cultivated and produce a great quantity of crops. It is one of 
the model Berkshire farms, with beautiful home buildings, which are 
charmingly situated on the banks of the Konkapot River. 




^/(V's'^S 



II 



LEE. 

EE is a very small n^me for a beautiful, and what Yankees 
call a smart town. Franklin Chamberlin, the Centennial ox'ator 
of Lee, who has had abundant opportunities for studying the 
scenery and institutions of both the old and new world, thus 
compliments this town: " Nestling among the foot hills of 
these mountain ranges, midway between old Greylock on the north and 
Mount Washington on the south, and divided by the swiftly flowing 
Housatonic (a river beautiful in name and in all its bed and border, 
from its source in lake and mountain spring, down among its wooded 
hills and pleasant valleys to its outlet in the sound), Lee has enough of 
"beauty to satisfy the desires of its children, while they remain at home, 
and to be a pleasant memory when they are away." 

Many portions of Lee are exceedingly beautiful ; indeed, the whole 
western part is the same as the Stockbridge and Lenox region in char- 
acter. Into this territory the country home purchasers will come in 
time when they are crowded from making purchases in the neighboring 
towns. The people of Lee have never encouraged the coming of city 
people to stay here for the season and the boarding houses in town are 
few, though they are placed where very good entertainment is given. 
George T. Perkins of New York, a native of Lee, comes here every sum- 
mer to a place that he owns a mile west of the village. William H. Ross 
of New York, also a native, comes to his place in South Lee in summer. 
Principal J. E. Bradley of the Albany High School, visits his father, 
Stephen Bradley, every summer. Aside from these and a few summer 
boarders, the comers to Lee are from neighboring towns, bent on enjoy- 
ing the many attractions that the town has. 

Fern Cliff. 
On the east of the village of Lee and in close proximity to it rises the 
rocky eminence called Fern Cliff, the summit of which is crowned with 
a beautiful grove of hemlocks. This is the trysting place of the vil- 
lagers, and no spot could be more charming for picnics, and walks and 
talks by daylight, or moonlight. This cliff extends about a third of a 
mile parallel with the village, and pleasant, shady walks, commanding 



THE nOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 191 

delightful and ever varying views, traverse the vrhole distance. At the 
north end stands a large boulder of gneiss, called Union liock, probably 
from the union of so many hearts consummated on this favorite resort of 
young lovers. On its broad back a dozen couples can stand at once and 
trace the windings of the Housatonic at its base and through the dis- 
tant meadows, and satisfy their eyes with the cultivated farms to be seen 
at the north and west, while the grand hills of Beartown stand out 
l)rominently in the south. The Rev. Dr. Barnas Sears, for many years 
president of Brown University and accustomed to Berkshire scenery, 
having been born in Sandisfield, once visited Fern Cliff, and was so 
charmed with its walks, trees, and views, that he said, " If I am ever 
able to retire from ]iulilic life, I should like to build a cottage and spend 
the evening of my days on this delightful eminence." This cliff is 200 
feet above the village and on one side is a small cave. 

A half hour's walk to the top of East Mountain (one can drive very 
near) shows a fine view of the Catskills and a good deal of Berkshire 
teriitory. The drive over Washington Mountain shows a magnificent 
view of Pittsfield and the surrounding country, far and near, with the il- 
lusion of bringing Greylock to within half its real distance; drive via 
Lenox Furnace, Ashley Lake, and return via New Lenox. Another de- 
lightful drive is to come from Monterey over the road to " Fernside," to 
get views of wonderful effect from the summit of the mountain. The 
drives to Lenox, to "Fernside," to South Lee over the Merrill Hill, to 
Beartown, to Lake May, to Lake Mahkeenac, and Bald Head Mountain, 
are so full of changing beauty that they never tire though repeated a 
hundred times. 

Laurel Lake. 

One of the most charming features in the scenery of Lee is Laurel 
Lake, a beautiful sheet of water, covering some six hundred acres, and 
situated in the northwest part of the town. The outline of this lake- 
let is marked by bays and capes, and one bold, rocky promontory ; and 
its shores, here and there beautified with groves of pine, hemlock and 
maple, are remarkably free from swamps. The land rises in gentle 
slopes from the water, furnishing beautiful sites for country seats, 
which have been generally appreciated and purchased. At the east of 
Laurel Lake rises a graceful eminence on which Arthur Oilman, of 
Cambridge, built an attractive cottage and laid out pleasant grounds, 
all since sold by him. 

In South Lee, just below the dam of the Hurlbut Paper Company, one 
may see hundreds of " pot holes " in the bed rock of the river, so plenty 



192 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 

here that no one notices them, though such holes are great curiosities in 
otlier regions. A rock in the meadow on tlie east side of the river, a 
very short distance north of the South Lee railway station, observed 
from the railway ;, looks like an elephant lying down. 

The quarries in Lee have furnished niarble for a large part of St. 
Patrick's cathedral in New York, the Philadelphia Trust and Safe De- 
posit building, the new City Hall in Philadelphia, and in that city the 
Farmers' and Mechanics' bank, the enlargement of Girard college and 
Dr. Jones's house; the two wings of the Capital at Washington, part of 
Washington Monument, and for the soldiers' head-stones in the national 
cemeteries. 

Lee is famous all over the country for its paper manufacture. Here 
paper was first made in 180(3 in South Lee village. In less than 50 years 
the town made more paper in quantity and value than any other town in 
the United States, and only three cities are now ahead of it in the value 
of their paper. The Smith Paper Company is one of the principle ones 
of the country, and makes 160 tons a week of news, book and manilla, 
besides many tons of wood pulp. Tliis was the first company in the 
United States to make paper partly of wood pulp and get an established 
sale for it. Wellington Smith, the manager of the business, has been Exe- 
cutive Councilor, member of the national republican convention of 1880, 
and president of the American Paper Manufacturers' Association. The 
famous " French Linen " paper is made by the Hurlbut Paper Company 
in South Lee, a paper that carried the highest honors at the international 
competition at Paris in 1873 and at Philadelphia in 1876. 

A sadly memorable day in East Lee was April 20, 1886, when the dam 
of Mud Pond, in the mountain, near Becket, gave way. 

The water descended four miles to the Housatonic Eiver, two miles of 
the distance being through the village, confined in the narrow valley. 
Every building bordering the stream was wrecked, several dams and 
bulkheads demolished, seven lives were lost and damage was done 
amounting to a quarter of a million. The scene of devastation was 
fearful. 

' HoBSES AND Orchids. 

The horse breeding establishment of Elizur Smith at " Highlawn Farm" 
on the south side of Laurel Lake, is one of the notable ones of the 
United States, whose fame has gone far and wide. The farm itself con- 
sists of 700 acres of highly cultivated land situated in a very siglitly lo- 
cation, and of several hundred acres of leased land. It is drained by 37 
miles of tile, has all kinds of machines and steam engine for operating 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 193 

them, has eight separate sets of large barns, and six wind mills that 
pump water through five miles of pipe. The stud was established in 
1882 and soon grew to large proportions ; it now consists of the stallions 
"Alcantara" and "Alcyone," each a $20,000 horse, "Montezuma," a 
beautiful $4,000 stallion, about 50 mares and more or less colts, making 
about 100 animals in all, worth $150,000 or more, besides the 700 acres of 
land, which may be worth $200 to $500 an acre, according to the notion 
of the purchaser. Farm and all, there is probably no other so costly a 
horse breeding establishment in the United States. Those who visit the 
farm on business are entertained at a private hotel on the premises, 
owned by Mr. Smith, where the surroundings are decidedly agreeable. 
Visitors and purchasers come from all over the eastern part of the 
United States, as far south as Washington and as far west as Kentucky. 
One of the notable collections of orchids in the United States is that of 
De Witt Smith in Lee, whose greenhouses are visited by many in winter, 
when the orchids are at their best. These orchids came from New 
Grenada, Brazil, the Andes, Guatemala, Oaxaca, Mexico, Assam, Bur- 
mah, Rangoon, Java, Manilla and other of the Phillipine islands, Japan, 
Madagascar, United States of Colombia, Costa Rica, the Rio Negro Cho- 
co, Bogota, La Guayra, Nepaul, Mount Ophir, Chiriqui, Borneo, Sylhet, 
Moulmein, Australia, the Himalayas, Guiana, Peru, Guayaquil, Organ 
mountains, Arracan mountains, Trinidad, Panama, Khoosea hills. Island 
of Pulo-Copang in the Chinese sea, the Malay islands, and parts of India, 
Africa, the East Indies, South America, Mexico, Central America, the 
West Indies, and the far East, not mentioned. In the summer about 30,- 
000 cultivated plants are set out on Mr. Smith's grounds, around his 
house in Lee village, and besides these and the orchids, he has many 
varieties of other choice plants. 

13 



MONXEREY. 

MONTEREY has drawn to its boarding houses of late years a goodly 
number of summer guests — houses environed by the majesty 
of beauty aft'orded by extensive vistas of glorious scenery of vale and 
mount. It is charmingly attractive as a peaceful spot wherein to while 
away a summer vacation. 

Monterey boasts one of the most beautiful of Berkshire's lakes, Lake 
Garfield, a mile from the village, which from its absolute seclusion and 
the wildness of the surroundings is the favorite "camping out" place of 
South Berkshire. It is a mile and a half in length by three-quarters of a 
mile broad, of irregular outline and shut in around much of the shore 
line by picturesque groves, admirable for camjiing purposes. At the 
northern end is a natural curiosity that has attracted much attention; a 
floating island, two hundred or more feet long, that rises and falls reg- 
ularly with the water. Formerly it "hung around" the south end, now 
and then floating from one side to the other; but a few years ago, when 
the banks were very full and a smart gale blowing, if drifted up the lake 
to its present moorings on a sand bank where it seems likely to stay for 
some time. With care one may stroll over its entire surface, and it has 
been now and then a good spot for trapping muskrats. The accommo- 
dations for visitors to the lake are sufficient in the line of boats, shelter, 
and so on. Stage leaves Great Barrington at 1:30 p. m., and Monterey at 
7 :30 p. M. 

Two miles south of the village is the romantic glen known as Hyde's 
Falls, through which a brook descends in a series of beautiful cascades 
for a mile. This is the favorite picnic ground of the entire vicinage. 

The drives around Monterey and the neighboring towns are numerous. 
Lake Buel, 4 miles distant, situated partly in the town on the southwest 
corner, is a favorite object of a day's or half a day's excursion. Ice Gulf 
is near by. The drive to " Fernside " exposes a memorable view from 
the top of the mountain. Stockbridge, Lenox and Great Barrington 
make drives that are frequently taken. 



SANDISFIELD, from its location on the hills, has wild and picturesque 
_ surroundings and is just the place to which city people hie them- 
selves away to make sure that they may escape all cares. 

This location in the summer is a desirable one for any one seeking re- 
tirement and quiet and one of the most healthful localities in the 
country. The elevated situation commands an expansive view of the 
surrounding country, at once romantic and attractive. A lover of fine 
scenery, embracing a wide stretch of country, would at once be attracted 
to this location and the bracing atmosphere and salubrious water con- 
ducive to health and enjoyment. Distance from Great Barrington or 
Winsted, Conn., 15 miles. Stage leaves Winsted 1.00 p. m. and Westfield 
at 1.30 p. M., and leaves Sandislield for those towns early in the morning. 
Not so richly endowed with lake scenery as Monterey and Otis, Sandis- 
field possesses a full share of the hill and valley prospects, which are the 
common heritage of the county. There are no summer hotels, strictly 
speaking, but many of the farmers' families receive guests for the sea- 
son, and those who find them out get their money's worth in health 
as well as pleasure. 



OTIS. 

THE region included in the towns of Monterey, Otis, and Sandisfield is 
a broad upland tract, agreeably broken with hill and mountain sum- 
mits, 1,500 to 1,800 feet above tide. The people, so far as the " old stock " 
at least goes, are plain, warm-hearted country folk, hospitable and 
intelligent, always ready to enjoy the society of strangers who come 
for a season of rest and wholesome rural pleasure, and to help in making 
their stay pleasant. But city people have not yet actually appropriated 
the region, as they have some other places, so that those who do resort 
there are sure of country life in the true old-fashioned sense of the word. 
Otis, sloping down to the valley of the Farmington, has always been 
noted for the number and beauty of its so-called "ponds." Those who 
never care how far removed they may be from railway facilities, find 
them a never failing delight. The largest, lying off in the lonely wooded 



196 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 



basin near East Otis, Eancl Pond or the Reservoir, as it is called, is known 
through all Berkshire and northwestern Connecticut as an unrivalled 
fishing place. It looks much like an Adirondack lake, so wild are the 
surroundings. The water, after issuing from this lake, has a ra]>id 
descent over precipitous ledges of rocks, forming what are known as Otis 
Falls. When viewed from an advantageous point in this romantic and 
weird ravine the scene is grand and sublime. In the southerly part of 
Rand Pond is a floating island of considerable extent. It is composed of 
debris and the tangled and matted roots of shrubbery, and where one 
walks over it a quaking motion is imparted to it, extending some distance 
on either side. Thirteen lakes, great and small, are situated in this town. 
Rand I'ond is the largest body of water in the county, and Great Lake, a 
mile from it, is next in size. Otis has for years been the resort of 
sportsmen and people fond of camp life. Its reputation stands high 
among such people in Springfield, and it is their habit to visit the town 
every year and stay as long as they can. Several j-esidents of the town 
take summer boarders, who may be sure of good entertainment. Stage 
leaves Otis and East Otis at 7.30 a. m., connecting with Lee through West 
Becket, and leaves Lee at 2.30 p. m. Stage leaves Chester 1 p. m. and 
Winsted, Ct., 1.15 p. M. for Otis and East Otis, returning early in the 
morning. 



AI.FORD. 

THE quiet village of Alford is beginning to attract summer visitors who 
become attached to the place, for its rustic peculiarities, its native 
beauties and wild belongings. The drives are fine to Egremont, Great 
Barrington, Green River, White's Hill, State Line, and West Stockbridge, 
and there is no end of walks in all directions and of all varieties. Tom 
Ball Mountain on the East is of high elevation and commands a varied 
and extensive outlook. A few rods back of Mr. Fitch's qviarry is the Fry- 
ing Pan Spring, a place where water falling in a cavity in the ground 
makes the peculiar sound of a large frying pan over a hot fire. 

The following extract is from a letter from one who spent two weeks 
in Alford in 1883: "The surrounding country, I feel inadequate to por- 
try faithfully ; the lovely drives over hill and dale, through beautiful 
valleys, up over the mountains from which bursts on the sight, the hills 
in all their grandeur; on one side, little villages, on the other a bank of 
hills with a little lake between, shining like a silver mirror." One must 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 197 

not fail to visit Crowned Head, so named by Mrs A. D. T. Whitney, so 
truthfully described by her in her book, " Odd or Even," wi-itten in this 
town: " We climbed the steep sides and reachetfthe summit, to view one 
of the grandest landscapes ever spread out for human eyes to feast upon. 
The mountains stand around like huge sentinels to guard the little 
hamlets scattered up and down the valley. We see the Hudson River, like 
a golden thread, while above and beyond the grand old Catskills pile up 
like mighty snow drifts, lost in the blue of heaven." Stage leaves Great 
Barrington at 3 p. m., leaves Alford at 11 A. m. 



ifVEsv sxockbridge;. 



WEST STOCKBRIDGE has many attractive features, and the town is 
romantically situated for the summer residences of city people. 
From this town there is a wild drive over the mountain to Stockbridge. 
West Stockbridge Center is the " old parish " of the town, and while of 
easy access, is probably the most perfectly secluded village in south Berk- 
shire. Its views are very line, with the Dome to crown all, off on the south- 
western horizon. Here has been for over a generation the home of the Rev. 
Lewis Pennell, whose life-long devotion to Hebi-ew studies has earned for 
him among his brethren of the cloth, the title of Rabbi. The quarries of 
the town have furnished marble for many buildings in cities, among them 
being the old City Hall in New York, part of Girard College, and of the 
State House at Boston. There is a small natural cavern in the southern 
part of the town. 

The mountain called Tom Ball, situated in this town, though it is 
equally accessible from Alford, affords one of the most charming out- 
looks to be found in Berkshire from mountain summits. The ascent is 
not very easy, because of tangled forest, clif ts and general steepness, but, 
when once accomplished, the views on every side are intensely effective. 
The range of vision is wide, both in points of compass and in distance. 
This mountain is one of those picturesque elevations so common in Berk- 
shire, rising abruptly from the adjacent valleys, without foot hills to 
dwarf them. Tom Ball, like many other summits in the county, is 
neither of the Taconics nor the Green Mountains, but stands in proud 
independence, apart from the main mountain ranges. 



BECKET. 

THE general elevation of this town is about 1,200 feet, its breezes are de- 
lightfully cool and invigorating and there is no malaria. The scen- 
ery is wild and romantic in places. Boulders of almost every kind abound, 
and in this town we are truly among the " Granite Hills," for this stone is 
prevalent and there are some fine quarries of it in this part of the range. 
It is indeed one of the summit towns of the county. North Becket, the 
principal place of business, is a thrifty and clean little village of .500 
people, lying along the branch of the river; Becket Center is farther to 
the south, delightfully situated; and West Becket is near the town line 
of Lee and Tyringham, on the south end. The mountain scenery is varied 
and grand in different parts of the town. Becket Mountain, in the 
northwest part is only two and one-half miles from the Claflin House at 
North Becket, and is 2,194 feet high ; it is easy of access, and almost at its 
feet is the Bulkley, Dun ton & Co. 's reservoir. Wadsworth Mountain is 
three miles south of North Becket, about 2,000 feet high, and from its 
summit the steeples of seven churches can be counted. Benton 
Mountain is only half a mile from the village, 1,800 feet high, affording a 
very handsome view. 

In the vicinity of the village ( North Becket ) are Yokun Lake, so 
named from the Indian chief who lived near there, and Center Lake, both 
of which are attractive sheets of water. There are many others, in 
different parts of the town, but the two first named, and Greenwater 
Pond, are easy of access. 

William Claflin was for many years a resident of the village, and his 
homestead was taken a few years ago by A. G. Cross, who opened it as a 
summer hotel. It has been altered and enlarged, and, with his cottages, 
he accommodates about 50 people. His guests are mainly families who 
come from New York, Brooklyn, New Jersey, St. Louis, Hartford, St. 
Paul, New Orleans, Washington, and even Lousiana. Some of the town's 
people take boarders at their farm houses. Baroness Mary vonMarbeck 
of New York has her summer home in Becket, as, also, has W. J. Stevens 
of Springfield. The drives are lovely all about — to Lee, Pittsfield, 
Lenox or Stockbridge, only about twelve miles away, to Hinsdale, Peru 
and Otis. The emei-y mills at Chester are worth a visit, a few miles away. 



RICH9IOP(D. 

RICHMOND is a quiet farming region, excepting in the southwest cor- 
ner, where are the extensive iron mines and furnace of tlie Richmond 
Iron Company. In this town was reared Henry W. Dwight, tlie manager 
of the American Express Company. Among eminent natives were Judge 
Henry W. Bisliop, a leading member of the Berlcshire bar after his re- 
moval to Lenox; President Rowley of Du Pauw College; George Perry, 
one of the editors of the l^ew York Ilome Journal; and several Congress- 
men. The house of Miss Catherine Pierson, near the Congregational 
church, was built by her father in 1790, and she has preserved it since, 
making it one of the most comfortable country homes in the county. 
She was an early friend of the artist Bridgeman, and she has many rare, 
l^ictures and bric-a-bric. 

Perry's Peak, 

In the northwest corner is Perry's Peak, 2,089 feet high, from which 
one of the finest views in all Beikshire can be obtained. The valleys 
below oi^en a scene of rare panoramic beauty. The Catskills on a clear 
day can be distinctly seen, and the craft sailing on the Hudson river; while 
on the west at one's feet is Queechy Lake in Canaan, the Shakers in 
that town, and the lovely valley of Lebanon for many miles north on the 
western slope. The Lebanon Shakers' settlement and the Columbia Hall 
farther north are nestled below, apparently only a short distance away, 
To the east is the Lenox range; north is Pittsfield and the entire valley 
in which it lies, Greylock farther beyond, and south the hills in West 
Stockbridge and Alford, a continuation of the Taconics. The summit of 
Perry's Peak is bare of trees and almost of soil, and the ascent is easily 
made in a wagon either from Richmond or the western valley from Leb- 
anon. Iti summer it is a favorite resort, and in the autumn, when the 
foliage is turning, the view is bewitching. Some who have seen the view 
from this peak pronounce it to be much finer than from the famous Rich- 
mond Hill in England. 

In Richmond is a queer geological curiosity in the celebrated " Boulder 
Trains," which continue through the town of Lenox and into Lee, 
though not so marked as in Richmond. The famous Balanced Rock is of 
this family. Many eminent geologists haye examined them — Sir Charles 
Ly«ll among others— and they have always excited wonder and interest. 
They were first discovered as such, and their presence given to the 



200 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 

world by Dr. Stephen Eeed, a uative of the town. They are simply 
huf^e boulders, either wholly or in part on the surface, strung along the 
ground, but with an interesting geological history. 

There are numerous fine di'ives in the town, esijecially in the east- 
ern part, along the base of Osceola and the Lenox Mountains, to 
Pittsfield. Near the church is " The Kenmore," which is now occupied 
in summer by a New York scientific school, whose members find ample 
range for study in nature all about them. Several of the town's people 
entertain visitors in the summer. 

Queechy Lake, over the state line, in Canaan, is a lovely sheet of water 
and only a short drive from Richmond. The Canaan Shakers, a branch 
of the New Lebanon family, are also near the lake. It is a fascinating 
drive to leave Pittsfield, go through Richmond, swing aruuiul the base of 
the spur in the gap at this point to Queechy Lake, thence up the valley 
by the Canaan Shakers to New Lebanon and the Mount Lebanon Shakers, 
back over the Tacouics, in sight of Perry's Peak and the other hills 
in that part of Hancock, through the settlement of the Pittsfield and 
Hancock Shakers to the village of Pittsfield again. 



HA!>(COCK. 

THE town of Hancock is a strip of land one-third the width of the 
State on its western border and two miles wide. There is no village 
in Berkshire so peculiarly situated as Hancock, with the Taconics to the 
east, towering above it, and beyond them to the west the valley and the 
farms over the line into New York. The first settlers called the place 
Jericho, but it finally took its name from John Hancock. Asa Douglas, 
from whom Stephen A. Douglas descended, was among the first settlers 
and Charles Shumway occupies the site of the old homestead. The 
Hands were another of the old families. The elder Samuel, after a great 
many reverses, at last became wealthy and died in New Lebanon, so the 
historian tells us, and left his wealth in Spanish milled dollars in iron 
pots in his cellar, and his heirs, in distributing it, some of them drew 
their shares to Hancock in wagon loads. Martin I. Townsend of Troy, 
N. Y., one of the most noted lawyers and politicians, is a native of Han- 
cock. The house of Kirk E. Gardiner was the first hotel in the town, 
and the old clock, the first one in Hancock, built into the wall of the 
house, is still doing duty as a time-piece and is a great curiosity. 
Richard Jackson, who was taken as a tory on his way to the battle ut 



THE BOOK OK BERKSHIRE. 201 



Bennington, sent to Great Barrington jail, and who afterwards went to 
Springfield, where he was convicted of treason, was of Hancock. He 
was the soul of honor, and walked the entire distance unattended and 
delivered himself up. His singular conduct finally procured his pardon. 

Potter Mountain. 

The drives in the town are charmingly magnificent. The road over 
Potter Mountain from Pittsfield, passing up through the west part of the 
town of Lanesboro commands one of the most entrancing landscapes in 
Berkshire. The road winds up the mountain from a few miles north- 
west of Pittsfield, making an easy ascent, and when the summit is 
reached, to the east is a rare panorama. Pontoosuc and Onota Lakes 
are at your feet. Pittsfield is just beyond, and presents a lovely picture, 
while farther to the south the eye wanders down the Housatonic Valley, 
or to the east further to the range east of Pittsfield and on to the Wash- 
ington Hills. To the east is Lanesboro, and the prominent points in 
that town. Northward is the old familiar outline of Greylock and its 
fellows. Turning to the west, the village of Hancock is seen sequestered 
and snug in the valley, while the fertile farms and the lovely valley be- 
yond, over in the other State, are taken in at a glance. From no other 
drive in Berkshire can so much be taken in at a glance as on the summit 
of the Potter Mountain road. A favorite drive from Pittsfield is over 
Potter Mountain to Hancock, then north to South Williamstown, and 
then back through New Ashford and Lanesboro to Pittsfield. The Ber- 
lin Mountain Range is on the west of the valley between Hancock and 
Williamstown, and is a charming region. 

In Hancock, on the summit of the Taconics, off the highway, is Berry 
Pond, on whose outletistheLuluCascade, a pretty waterfall much visited. 
On this summit, plainly seen from Pittsfield, is the Promised Land, the 
Tower Mountain, and many other interesting points, from whose sum- 
mits excellent views of the surrounding landscape are seen. South of 
the Lebanon highway, is the Shakers' Holy Ground, where their spiritual 
feasts were once held. 

The town is quiet, peaceful and healthful. Its principal attractions 
are such as God has given it in its natural beauty. It is not a resort to 
any extent, and the homes are of the architecture of other times. The 
farms are well kept and the farm houses cozy and tasteful. Its drives 
are among the most romantic and singular in the county, and Pittsfield 
and New Lebanon utilize the mountain summits and the valleys for 
this purpose. Stages leave Hancock .5 p. m. ; Pittsfield, 3 p. m. 



IvATVESBORO. 



DJOIXING ritrslield on the north, Lrxnes- 
boro is the northern town of the Housa- 
tonic Valley. Its scenery and attractions, 
as in every other Berkshire town, are 
pecnliarly its own. With wooded heights, 
fruitfnl hillsides, blossomins; \-alleys and 
pictnresque scenery at every turn, it is 
an interestiniT place. It is quiet, seques- 
tered and peaceful, and has no large 
villages. Pontoosuc Lake is partly 
in this town. Standing near it. one looks 
northward toward a most beaurifnl pros- 
pt'cT. It is a lovely road and drive irom 
rirt*tield to Lanesboro. The town com- 
memorated Centennial year by planting 

on each side of the main highway a row of maples the entire length of 

its territory north and south. 




The Look-off Summits. 

There are several Summits and prominent points in the towni. such as 
Savage Hill. Faruham Hiil. Briggs's Cobble and Constitution Kill, all in 
the vicinity of the main village, while in the eastern part, near Berkshire 
Village, the location of the famous Berkshire Glass works, are Crystal 
Hill, so named for the tine quality of glass sand found there, and a 
rugged point of rocks in the southeastern part of the town. 

Constitution Hill, west of the village affords a tine outlook, of which 
J. E. A. Smith, in his " Taeonic," thus writes: ''Lying under its 
druidical oaks, or seated farther up. upon a pearl white quartz rock, in 
the shade of a whispering birch, you will see below you, groves and farms, 
and broad fresh meadows, with laughing lake and winding rivulet." 
The autumn "leaves here seem to have a perfection of beauty not at- 
tained elsewhere : you shall not desire to see a more gorgeous sight than 
Constitution Hill in October." On the western declivity there is a small 
cavern. Frt.>ni the piazza of the Dr. Pratt homestead a view south is ol>- 



:iIE BOOK OF ISEKKSIIIKE. 203 



tained, sweeping away down beyond Pittsfield and taking in tho 
Housatonic Valley for many miles. 

The iron furnace of tho Lancsboro Iron Company, in the village, is an 
object of curiosity when in blast. The ore taken from the beds in tho 
west part of the town, also worth a visit, is among the finest for the manu- 
facture of car wheels. Near Constitution llill, in a little school-house, 
Arthur Oilman and Horace E. Scudder had a literary workshop, a few 
years ago, and here the Bodley Books, the work on Chaucer, and 
some other books were penned. Savage Hill and Farnham Hill lie to the 
northeast, are easy of access and some lovely views are obtained from 
these points. 

Balanced Rock. 

A great curiosity is tho famous Balanced Rock in tho southwest part 
of the town. It is located on the farm of Grovo K. Ilurlburt, and is^ 
a few rods distant from the highway, an easy drive through the field 
being the route thereto. It is a huge irregular mass of massive marble, 
grown gray by age and exposure, 30 feet long and 15 wide, poised on an- 
other rock three feet from the ground, and so evenly balanced that at 
first glance it seems as though it could easily bo pushed from the smaller 
stone — a feat often attempted. There is many a legend connected with 
it. In the same pasture is another curiosity, a huge tree growing out of 
the solid rock. This locality has also the iron mines, and still farther 
north is a cave which has something of legend to make it interesting. 
It is several rods long, and is almost at the base of Potter Mountain. 

The Drives. 
There are many fine drives in the town. The road through the 
village and northward is one of them, either straight ahead, north, 
to Pratt's Hill, or bearing to the west a little, the road to New Ashford 
and thence to Williamstown. East of the village are also some fine 
views. Taking the road at tho Baptist church cast, the drive of two or 
three miles to Berkshire Village is a pleasant one. The farm house of 
the Messrs. Owen, recently purchased by a New York gentleman, is 
a cozy country seat. Turning a little south from there the trip to Dalton 
can be made, through the " Oulf," which on each side is a wild, and pleas- 
ing piece of scenery. Or from tho Owen place directly east to Berkshire 
Village is also a nice drive. A fine grove for picnicing parties is on this 
road near Berkshire Village. Back to tho village again over another road, 
near the Congregational church, is a drive for a mile east, then to the 
north over the highway leading to Cheshire, on the west of the reservoir — 



204 THK BOOK OF BEKKSllIKE. 

a most lovely drive. A great many excellent and prominent men have at 
T;\rious times been residents of Lanesboro; in fact at one time it was qnite 
famons for its lawyers, among them being Governor George N. Briggs in 
the early part of his practice. Henry Shaw, father of Henry W. Shaw. 
(*' Josh Billings'") was in his time one of the most prominent lawyers and 
politicians of the country. The homestead, which was the birth-place of 
■" Josh Billings," still remains in the village, commanding a boantiful 
sight, and is now occupied by William B. McLaughlin, formerly of 
Baltimore. The remains of the famous humorist lie in the little ceme- 
tery in the south part of the village, as he requesteil. and it was also his 
desire that his monument be a rough boulder from one of the marble 
quarries in the town, without adornment or polish, with a simple 
inscription on it, giving his real name and nom de plume. The Kev Dr. 
Samuel Brenton Shaw, who at the time of his death in Khode Island in 
1SS5. was the oldest living rector in the United States, was pastor of St. 
Luke's in the town for more than 30 years. His remains are buried 
here. 

Within a few years Lanesboro has become a place of resort for city 
guests for boarding. The town has many beautiful locations for 
summer villas, and it possesses a great many attractions for those who 
desire the quietude of rural life, away from the railway. The "Brook- 
side Fai-m " of Josiah A. Boyce. t.H miles north of Pittstield. entertains 
guests, and is in a delightful situation for the enjoyment of country life. 
Stages leave Pittstield. o r. m.. Williamstowu. t.> a. m.; leave Lanesboro. 
4.10 P. M. and 9. -45 A. M. 



IJVASHINGXON. 

WASHINGTON (to be distinguished from Mount Washington) toucli- 
es the southeast corner of Pittsfield, and is about 700 feet liighcr, > 
or, say, 1,700 feet above tide water. There are some most charming views 
from difVerent portions of tlie town, especially on tlic west slope, overlook- 
ing Pittsfield, and from near the old Congregational church. 

Ashley Lake, which supplies Pittsfield with water, lies in a basin of white 
granular quartz, and is fed with numberless living springs of the finest 
quality of water. It is about a mile long, and just beyond is a bed of 
white sand, which for many years was used for glass-making. " Undine 
Glenn" is near this point. There are two delightful drives out of Pitts- 
field to Washington. Just beyond the east line of Pittsfield, one cau 
turn to the right, and, bearing south, follow up the hill, a new view 
opening at every turn, until the summit is reached. The center of the 
town near the old church, was the birthplace of Governor Edwin D. 
Morgan of New York. The Pev. Elijah Kellogg, one of the old-time circuit 
rider preachers of the New Yoik conference, a chaplain in the Connec- 
ticut State prisons, was also a native of the town. 

October Mountain, the range on the east of the Ilousatonic, near the 
Lenox station and north, is in this town; the outlook from it is charm- 
ing, and in the autumn, with its variegated foliage, it is a lovely sight. 
Roaring Brook, which having its source in West Pond near the eastern 
base of October Mountain, is a wild stream running through Tory Glen, a 
place visited from Pittsfield and Lenox. The " City" is a small settle- 
ment near the Boston & Albany lailway station, about a mile south, 
where a view of the eastern valley is obtained. A few city guests have 
made this a summer home, and there are several cozy farm houses where 
people are entertained. 

Another drive from Pittsfield is to follow the course of the old Pontoosuc 
turnpike up the hill, along a most romantic drive, near which Hows the 
Sackett Brook. When the summit of tbe hill is gained, two miles fur- 
ther a table land is reached, and the view is quite jileasing, especially to 
the east. It is sometimes a favorite drive to take this route from Pitts- 
field to the Washington railway station, go from theie to the "City," 
and from thence by tlie first-named highway, back by way of the old Con- 
gregational church down tlie mountain to Pittsfield again. In the night, 
from the brow of the hill, Pittsfield in the distance and in the valley 700> 
feet below, with its lights gleaming, makes a novel picture. 



D ALTON village lies sequestered in the busy valley, through which 
runs the Housatonic River's east branch, furnishing the motive 
power, largely, to the great paper mills which have made the 
town famous. There is a great deal of natural scenery in Dalton. 
To the south is Day Mountain, 700 feet above the village, and from its 
summit, which is a little difficult of access, but nevertheless approachable, 
a fine view is obtained almost to the northern extremity of the county. 
Warner Hill is in the southern part of the town, toward the junction 
with Washington. West of here, in the valley where the lines of Pitts- 
iield and Dalton meet, are several fine drives. 

Wizard's Glen. 

The principal natural curiosity is the "Wizard's Glen," in the west 
part of the town, known as " The Gulf," on the road leading west from 
near the Methodist church to Lanesboro. Here the road passes through 
jagged rocks, and in some places the merest ripple of water, or laugh, 
or word is echoed and re-echoed. The shade in some places is delightful 
and overhangs the highway. Tradition says that long before the pale- 
face came to the valleys this glen was the place where the priests of the 
Indian tribe made their incantations and slew their victims as a sacrifice 
to their god; one large rock is known as the Devil's Altar. This spot has 
its legends and wild stories, in keeping with the grandeur and loneliness of 
the place. In Mr. Smith's " Taconic " is an interesting legend of the ad- 
venture that one Chamberlain had, after slaying a deer and lying down 
to sleep in the glen, on a night of thunder and lightning. A view of 
the devil and his imps holding high carnival was opened to him, and 
finally, in mortal fear, taking out his Bible, he pronounced the Name, 
which dispelled the vision and gave him rest and quiet. In some respects 
this Wizard's Glen and the surroundings through the Gulf are among the 
finest bits of Berkshire scenery. 

The soap-stone quarries near the Wahconah Falls are quite an attractive 

place to visit. 

Fixe Papers. 

The hillsides of the town abound with the purest water, and it is 
to this source that the town is indebted largely for its reputation in 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 207 

papei -making. Who has not heard of the " Old Berkshire Mills " of Car- 
son ct Brown, or "Weston's Ledgers," or the famous bond papers of 
Crane & Co., nor yet of the ladies' stationery of Z. Crane, Jr., & Brother? 
The second paper mill in the state west of Worcester was built here 
in 1801 by Zenas Crane, the pioneer paper manufacturer of western 
Massachusetts. The hillsides are full of springs of water so pure that 
for months the water may run through the whitest flannel without 
discoloring it. Added to these are the four artesian wells of ex-Lieuten- 
ant-Governor Byron Weston, from 100 to 500 feet deep, all discharging 
over 1,000 gallons a minute; the Carson & Brown Company, have one of 
the most abundantly flowing artesian wells in the country — 700 gallons a 
minute. 

Here are the extensive fine paper mills of Messrs. Z. Crane, Jr., & 
Brother, and near the same the pretty little library building the firm has 
built and mainly sustains for its employes. The hovise of Z. M. Crane is 
just beyond, and a magnificent country home it is, with an elegant con- 
servatory, and a little lakelet in the rear of the house and grounds. 

Across the street are the houses of ex-Councilor Zenas Crane, Jr., and 
W. Murray Crane, his brother. Half a mile farther east, fronted by 
a little park, is the well-kept house and grounds of J. B. Crane, and 
nearly opposite is the handsome house of John D. Carson. Z. M. and J. B. 
Crane have made bank-note paper for more than an ordinary life-time. 
They make the distinctive paper of the United States and Bond and Xote 
paper for numerous governments. Farther east are the great mills of the 
Carson & Brown Company, who manufacture flue writing papers and 
ledgers. Near the center, bearing the name of "Elmwood Summer 
Besort," W. B. Clark has built several summer cottages which have 
been tenanted by a fine class of summer people. A very notable 
bouse is the elegant new building of Hon. Byron Weston, whose papers 
have taken a score of medals in this and other counti-ies. The village is 
one of the most thriving of its size in the state; its working people are of 
excellent character, the mills are almost out of sight, and the village has 
no appearance of the typical New England factory village. Though a 
manufacturing town, there are fewer arrests in Dalton than in any other 
town in Berkshire, according to the population. 

We have no space to go into the highly interesting history of Dalton. It 
has its old families; families who have come with the beginning of the 
town and have staid, worked for its interest and grown deservedly 
-wealthy and well-known as the reward of their honest endeavor. The 
Cranes, among tho first settlers of the town, have been honored as well as 



208 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIKE. 

widely known. Three generations have been in the Governor's Council. 
The development of the paper trade in the countrj'^ has been aided 
largely by this family. Gov. Weston, the Chamberlains, Merriams, 
Greens, Carsons, Browns, Marshes, the Williamses of the family whose 
name is linked closely with other portions of Berkshire, and many others, 
all left their impress on the town for its greatest good. 

Mount Westox. 
The view from Mount "Weston, to which one may drive, two miles from 
the village center, is exceedingly fine. Here Governor Weston has 
his chalet, a log house where, with the coziest soi-t of comfort, parties of 
friends are entertained from time to time with rare good feeling. Its 
opening was made memorable by the attendance of the Pittslield Monday 
Evening Club in the autumn of 1SS5, with a feast of good things and 
a flow of soul afterwards, that were participated in by Senator Dawes, 
Pastor Jenkins, Judge Barker, Kev. William Wilberforce Newton, and 
others. 

IIINSDAI.E. 

HIXSDALE is locatedon the high lands of the county, on the main line 
of the Boston A- Albany railroad, which at the station is 1.431 feet 
above tide water. The Ashmere Reservoir, in the east part of the town, 
covers several hundred acres on the road to Peru Center. In the north part 
are some fine drives, the roads gradually descending and opening a con- 
stantly-changing landscape and giving new views to the west. The 
Plunkett Reservoir, covering many acres, is in the southwest part of the 
town and is much resorted to. In fact, the town has several fine brooks 
and lakes, the latter reservoirs, which are famous for angling, while 
game abounds plentifully in the woods and the mountain peaks. 

West of the village is a pleasant hill from which a fine view is ob- 
tained, especially at the house of Milo Stowell, nearly on the summit. 
Following this road farther west, on the side of the hill, a beautiful 
view of Pittsfield and its surroundings is taken in at a glance. There is 
a mineral spring near the village, the waters of which have had some 
local reputation. 

The town has had a high reputation for good citizenship from its 
earliest days. It was named from the Rev. Theodore Hinsdale, who re- 
moved here in 17S5, and his descendants are still honored both in his 
name and the branches of the parent vine throughout Berkshire. His eld- 
est daughter, Nancy, was the first teacher of a female school in Pittsfield 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 209 



and assisted largely in making the Willard College at Troy what it has 
become; the sons and grandsons of the first Theodore, have been active 
men in the town, being at present the Hinsdale Manufacturing Com- 
pany. The Whites were another old family in Hinsdale, and from the 
town has gone out the head of the great firm of R. H. White & Co., of 
Boston, whose summer vacations are spent in his native town. A. 

D. Matthews, the well-known Brooklyn merchant, is a native of Hinsdale. 

E. A. Hubbard, for many years the superintendent of schools in Spring- 
field and well known throughout the State, is a native; Henry C. 
Haskell, a missionary in Turkey, and Chauncey Goodrich, of a family 
connected intimately with the history of the town, and a missionary to 
Pekin, China, were both natives of this good old town ; William E. Mer- 
riman, president of Riison College, Wis., Francis E. Warren, governor of 
Wyoming are also natives, and many others could be given, who, catch- 
ing the inspiration from the town of their birth, have gone out to useful 
and prominent places in life in other parts of the country. Lyman 
Payne, who came some years ago to Hinsdale, and whose elegant country 
home is near the locality known as "The Flat," has one of the finest 
stud of blooded horses, as well as cattle of rare excellence in the county. 
The Congregational church on a slope overlooking the village is among 
the oldest in the county. 

The town has as yet few or no country homes for city families, 
although recently a New York gentleman has purchased the old Hins- 
dale homestead for that purpose. There is but one hotel in the village, 
and there have been but little efforts made to attract summer tourists 
and guests to the town. There are several drives of from four to six 
miles about the town, which are very pleasant, and the roads are so laid 
out that in many instances the drives are practically around " squares." 



PERU. 

PERU, four miles from the railroad at Hinsdale, has the honor of being 
the highest inhabited land in the State. The Congregational church 
stands on the very summit, and its old-fashioned box pews still remain. 
The winds blow fiercely on this summit and to prevent the demolition 
of the steeple, there are heavy cables running down each side and fas- 
tened securely in the rock; for verily the church at this place is " founded 
on a rock." Another prominent feature of this old edifice is that the 
rain falling on the east side of the roof runs eastward and thence to the 
14 



210 THE BOOK OF BEKKSHIKE. 

headwaters of the Counecticut and that on the west side finds its way 
through the headwaters of the Housatonic. No other phice in Massa- 
chusetts can boast of such a novelty. 

From this point the view to the north is very fine, and the stern old 
sentinel of the Hoosac Valley is plainly visible and even mountains 
farther beyond in Vermont. French Mountain, 2,239 feet high, a short 
distance south of the church, is the highest of the summits in the Green 
Mountain range in this part of the county. Its summit is quite easy of 
access and the look-off, especially to the north and south, is magnifi- 
I cently gi-and. The surface of the town is so broken and hilly, that there 
are fine drives in all directions. In the southern part of the town there 
are many charming slopes and hill-top views, which are so numerous 
and varied as to beggar description. Going northward through the 
towns of Peru, Windsor, Savoy and Florida to Xorth Adams, a charming 
view is afforded, as the tourist keeps all the way along the top of the 
Green Mountain range, — a ride that has become quite popular for a day 
or two of outing. The town has abundant natural attractions, but its 
isolation has prevented any great infiux of summer guests. It is purely 
agricultural, quiet, peaceful and very healthy. Stage leaves Hinsdale, 12, 
noon; Peru, 2 p. M. 



IJVIXDSOR. 

ON the east slope of the town there are numberless interesting drives, 
through a fine farming section. On the Westfield River is a settle- 
ment of good families where a few summer people have tai'ried for a season. 
Of late the town is having a good many tourists who are attracted to it 
by its quietude and the home life of its people. Stage leaves Hinsdale, 12, 
noon; Windsor, 2. p. m. 

Windsor Hill, rightly named, is reached by an easy though some- 
what hilly road from Dalton, up the Wahconah Brook. From this hill, 
one stands nearly in front of Greylock, looking almost into its veiy sum- 
mit, apparently only a short distance away. It is one of the finest views 
from the r?.nge. It is a treat to climb to the belfry of the old Congre- 
gational church and look upon the glorious landscape. The road north 
to Savoy, or northwest to Cheshire is an attractive drive. There are 
several old burial grounds in different parts of the town which have 
some queer epitaphs. 

Wahconah Falls. 

On the Wahconah Brook, almost near the Dalton line and in fact just a 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIEE. 211 

trifle in tlie latter town, so that it is familiarly spoken of in connection -with 
Dalton, are the famovisWahconah Falls, or, as some say, the Windsor Falls. 
They are right by the roadside and a sketch of the lower fall is given on 
another page. The stream has been constantly gaining an imjietus 
in its descent, now flowing through the meadow or pasture, leisurely, 
and, again, maddened and huri-ied, running quite rapidly. It is a suc- 
cession of cascades, until at this jsoint hemmed in by rocks and stones 
of quite large size, the stream makes a leap of some eighty feet and lies 
for a time partially calm in quite a deep pool in a basin below. A pupil 
of Maplewood, a few years ago, visited the spot, and, becoming giddy, 
fell from the rocks into this pool and was drowned before her school- 
mates could rescue her. Wahconah Falls have a history, pleasantly told 
in the legends given in " Taconic." The stream is named for the Indian 
maiden Wahconah, the daughter of Miahcomo, the chief of the tribe re- 
siding in the valley where now is Dalton. The tale is interesting and 
was a romance indeed, but too long for these pages. The falls decided 
eventually the fate of this fair Indian maiden, giving her to the brave of 
her clioice rather than to the rival who was ugly and painted. It is still 
a romantic spot, and frequently visited in summer by parties for a day's 
outing, for there- are picnicing places and cool restful spots in the 
neighborhood. They are owned by Z. M. Crane, of Dalton, who also 
owns the famous "Day Mountain" in Dalton, both of which he bought 
several years ago because of their attractiveness. 

The family of which Senator Dawes is a worthy descendant, was 
among the first settlers, and he tells now with a good deal of I'elish how 
he walked six miles to the old church, one winter day through the snow, 
to be examined by the school committee as a pedagogue in one of the 
schools of the town. Men of prominence in professional life have gone 
out from Windsor, and one of the originators of the prayer meeting un- 
der the haystack at Williams College, from which sprang the missionary 
effort of the new world, was a Windsor young man. 



CHHSHIRH. 

THIS town presents twenty-five angles in its outline. The range of 
hills to the east are of the Green Mountains. The hest way to 
reach Staiford's Hill, the first place in town inhabited by white 
people, is to follow the Savoy road, east, for a short distance to 
the Jacques disti'ict, so-called, and then turning north to Stafford's Hill, 
From the top of this hill the view is most charming. On the same range, 
near the extreme southern border of the town and above the residence of 
George Fisher, east of the middle of the reservoir, is another 
magnificent view, to the south especially. In fact there is no end of 
views at nearly all points in this part- of the town. The scenery around 
Cheshire Harbor, in the north part of the town, where the river lies 
landlocked in a snug harbor, is also strikingly beautiful. 

On the west side of the village is a range of hills which are also rich in 
variety of scenery. Going west of the village a little way, then turning 
northward through the road known as "Pork Lane," there is a fine 
drive, and, from the R. C. Brown farm is a wood road which leads nearly 
to the summit of Greylock; it has for years been the favorite route to the 
top of that interesting place. Further on the west line, among the hills 
plainly seen from the railway and the village, whose slopes are 
dotted with farm houses, is Little Mountain, which is next to Grey- 
lock in point of view in the northern part of the county; its summit is 
bald, and from it in a clear day, five different states, Massachusetts, 
Vermont, New York, Connecticut and the peaks in Xew Hampshire, can 
be easily seen with the naked eye. The Catskills, forty miles away, are 
clearly seen. 

The sand beds, from which the purest of silex is obtained, in the 
east part of the village, are a curiosity; the furnace where iron is made 
is worth a visit at night. The Berkshire Glass Works, only four miles 
south are often visited in summer, at evening especially, when the blow- 
ing is in process. 

The JSTorthrup Brook, emptying into the reservoir near Farnum's, is a 
curiosity. After leaving its source for some distance, it suddenly enters 
the ground and is lost to view for a considerable way and finally emerges 
from a cave materially increased in size. A little way further is Barker's 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 213 



Falls, with a single leap of about 75 -feet. Nearly all the places of in- 
terest on the west slope are easily accessible and can easily be driven 
to with a team. 

The Fisks, of whom the famous " Jim " Fisk was a descendant, were 
for many years residents of Cheshire; the elder James, was horn in 
town and lived here for years. The eccentric Elder Leland, a divine of 
the Baptist denomination, widely known in his time, was for many years 
the village pastor, and his old house still stands a little west of the 
village toward the cemetery. The old cemeteries of the town are 
numerous and thejL are worth a visit by the curious. The famous 
Cheshire Cheese will go down in history as the idea of this eccentric 
parson. He was a great admirer of President Jefferson, and, accordingly 
he invited a contribution of the cheese curd of the town to be made into 
a cheese for him. It was gathered at the cider mill of Captain Brown 
and into the hoop on the cheese press the curd was turned. The result 
was that nearly every family and nearly every cow in the town had 
contributed to it, and when finished the mammoth cheese weighed 1,23.5 
pounds. The cheese was taken to Hudson, in a wagon and shipped to 
Washington by water. Tbe anecdotes of tliis celebrated, eccentric par- 
son are still told with great zest in the town. 

The village wears an air of cozy thrift and comfort, and from it the 
drives are legion. The valley is so situated that one drives up on the 
east side for example and back by the west road and the traveler finds 
not only many new things to attract the eye, but an entirely different 
picture as the scene is reversed. A fine drive to Pittsfield, is down the west 
bank of the reservoir, rising the hills to Lanesboro and thence to Pitts- 
field, ten miles, and back by the Junction, through the Berkshire Glass 
"Works and on the east side of the reservoir to Cheshire again. Going 
north toward Adams through '"The Harbor" to Adams village, then 
turning by the paper mills there, striking the east slope of that village 
and back by the "Pumpkin Hook" neighborhood, striking the east road 
in Cheshire and back to the village again, is a lovely drive of ten miles 
with new scenery at each turn. The road east of Cheshire Harbor is ro- 
mantic, among rocks and hills, a good highway all the distance. Pittsfield 
is ten miles, Lenox 10, Williamstown 15; North Adams at the other and 
northern extremity of the valley is ten miles; Adams, five miles; and 
Savoy, with a number of pleasant mountain drives, seven miles. 

The town has become a summer resort for people from New York 
and Brooklyn largely, though Philadelphia, Buffalo, and other cities have 
been represented. Ten years ago the country seat of the late R. C. 



214 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 



Brown was opened for a summer rest as " The Cedars," by his son Fred 
C. Brown, and it has been a resort for manj' people, among them Judge 
Hall of the New York Marine Court, Warren Brown, a New York lawyer, 
Mr. Studley, manager of the Goodyear Rubber Company, Mi\ Rintoul, 
manager of the Morgan estate of New York, the Thompsons, an old 
family from Buffalo, and many others. As a rule, the families going to 
Cheshire are among the more cultivated and educated people of the cities. 
A few years ago Mrs. Dumont of New York purchased the Richardson 
estate north of the village and christened it very properly " Greylock 
Villa." The Hoosac Valley House, in the south part of the village, has 
also had several summer guests, and is a well-kept hotel. At the foot of the 
hill north of " The Cedars," still remains the old tavern built by Captain 
Brown in the Revolutionary days, and at which the soldiers were 
gathered for the battle of Bennington. Cheshire is rich in many ways, 
both in its natural beauty, its peculiar early history, and its traditions. 
A number of prominent men in other parts of the country have been 
reared in this town, among them Gordon Cole, a prominent lawyer of 
St. Paul, Minn., Captain Turtle of the United States Engineer Corps, 
and others. 

SAVOY. 

THIS is one of the hill-top towns of Berkshire, grand in a good many 
bits of scenery, and cold in winter. Spruce Hill, in tlie north part 
of the town, Lewis Hill, and some others, are prominent and from their 
summits a good many fine views are obtained. A trout supper at 
Bowker's, the only hotel in the town, is a treat which many from Adams 
and North Adams often enjoy. Of late the town is resorted to a good 
deal in the course of a drive by tourists, and the main road through the 
town east and west is the thoroughfare to Cummington and other 
Hampshire towns. From some of the points in the town, a clear stretch 
from Monadnoik to Greylock is obtained, and the course of the tunnel, 
under Florida Mountain, is clearly defined. 

The eastern range of the hills overlooks some grand pieces of scenery 
in the Deerfield Valley, and to the rugged hills beyond in Franklin 
County. There are five hamlets in the town; Savoy Center and Savoy 
Hollow are the principal ones, in the latter, in the south part of the town, 
being the only hotel. It is an old fashioned hostlery well-kept with 
country fare ; but a Stockbridge tourist, on a recent summer, said of it, 
that he found it his ideal of an inn, in a town of that rank. 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 215^ 



Many of the religions of the day have flourished in this little town; 
there have been Mormons, Adventists, Baptists, Methodists, Congrega- 
tionalists, Shakers, who remained only a few years however, and some 
others. William Miller, the father of Millerism, labored here for some 
time. Excellent families have had their origin in Savoy. Abel Carpenter 
went to Chicago when it was but a village of logs, delivered the first 
temperance lecture in that city, and started the first Sunday school 
there. .Jarvis N. Dunham, President of the Springfield Fire and Marine 
Insurance Company, is a native of the town. There are many fine drives, 
and the town is easily accessible by stage from Adams, only six miles 
away. The town is also in the line of the drives on the mountain top 
from Hinsdale to Florida and JSTortli Adams. 



IVE^W ASHPORD. 



THIS town is a picturesque gorge, lying between the giant foot hills of 
Saddle Ball on the east and a spur of the Taconics on the west. The 
scenery is grand, and there are few drives in the county so romantic as 
this part of the old country road between Pittsfield and Williamstown, 
which passes through what is locally and appreciatively termed the 
" Switzerland of Berksliire." 

Sugar Loaf is a shapely mountain, with several small caves, and its 
dens have been the resort of coons and mountain cats for a long time. 
An autumn hunt at night for these animals is among the attractions 
of the place. Saddle Ball is eastward from Sugar Loaf, a continuation 
of Greylock and a prominent peak in Northern Berkshire. It cuts the 
horizon with a bold and symmetrical outline, and the view from its 
summit, which is accessible with but little effort, is one of the grandest 
in the country. • The view from Beach's Hill is especially fine, and from 
its summit, which is easy of access, one looks down over the town as into 
a basin; the deceptive arrangement of the hills give the appearance of 
sloping walls, with no possible outlet for road or river. 

In the north part of the town is the old Brown sawmill, spanning a 
chasm of great depth, which a mere railing separates from the highway. 
This view is of more than common interest, and is the subject of a 
fine painting. The stunted hemlocks over the rocky edge of the narrow 
abyss, the ruins of the old mill, the crumbling and mossy pillars of tlie 
old dam and the general wildness of the locality, as a background, make a 
most charming picture. 



216 THE BOOK OF DERKSHIRE. 

Near the village is the old cemetery where the ''rude forefathers of 
the hamlet sleep," and far outnumber the living. The inscriptions are 
some of them quaint. In the southwest part of the town is Baker's 
Cave, the entrance to which is through a circular opening in the meadow. 
From this, a cavernous passage extends 100 feet or more with a sharp 
descent, to a cold spring at the bottom. 

The stage from Pittsfield and Williamstown makes daily trips through 
the village. The air and scenery and mountain drives are all that can be 
desired, but as yet there is no hotel, and but few people have been 
attracted to the town as a resort. Its attractions, however, will amply 
repay the tourist for a close intimacy with them. 



FI.ORIDA. 

FLORIDA possesses some of the most attractive views in all northern 
Berkshire, and is almost entirely in its length and breadth on the 
summit of the Green Mountain or Hoosac range, as it is called at this 
point. It is a barrier of rock and mountain between Berkshire and the Deer- 
field Valley, and through its entire width the Hoosac Tunnel pierces its 
heart; in fact all but a few feet of tho tunnel is in the town of Florida, 
although the great work is intim vtely associated with North Adam.?, 
■which is only a mile or so away from its western portal. The town has 
an elevation of from 1,000 to 1,400 feet above the valley. 

Its drives are a panorama at every hand. On the west side, after the 
summit is reached, and especially on the road over the mountain to 
North Adams, it is a grand picture. In fact the village of North Adams 
is hardly left before the hill-top opens its grand views. The town is a 
succession of hills and valleys when the top is fairly reached, until the 
slope towards the east side is approached. On the east slope is another 
magnificent view, although not so far reaching. There is a narrow valley 
of the Deerfield, near the east portal of the tunnel, and here, rising at 
least 1,000 feet to the west, is the range of mountains, down the side 
of which the stage road has come, and the passenger, when he alights, is 
almost dizzy as he thinks of the rugged passage he has made. Florida 
is really on the top of the mountain, its east side presenting an unbroken 
succession of hills and mountain peaks, while its west side towards 
North Adams is also steep and not easy of access excei^ting over the 
established roads. 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 217 

HoosAC Tunnel. 

During the building of the tunnel, in a depression of the valley, a shaft 
was sunk, known as the Central Shaft, to the depth of over 1,000 feet, 
so that the tunnel had four headings, one each from the east and west 
ends, and two from the central shaft. Here was a busy settlement of 
miners and workmen, and during the work a fearful accident occurred 
whereby nearly forty men lost their lives and were buried, more than a 
year, 000 feet in the bowels of the mountain, while that space was filled 
with water. An accident to the pump house, which was destroyed by fire, 
prevented them from being rescued and the pumicing of the water cost the 
State an immense sum. The place is an interesting one to visit, and it 
is a wonder how the great hills of stone piled up on every hand were 
ever raised out of the interior of the mountain. The shaft is protected 
by a wall 16 feet high, so that there is no danger of falling down its 
cavernous mouth. The spot is easily reached by a highway turning 
south just as the town line is reached out of North Adams, above 
that village. The length of the Tunnel is 2.'>,0SI feet, or about 4| miles. 

Florida village is a little hamlet on the top of tlie mountain, with no 
special attractions excepting its isolation and (juietude. The other vil- 
lage is Hoosac Tunnel Station. From Florida village north and east is a 
well kept and romantic road to Monroe in Franklin County and thence to 
Readsboro in Vermont, which latter town is also a summer resting place 
of considerable note. Near Mr. Whitcomb's the road bears to the south 
and east, and all the distance presents many views which attract the be- 
holder. The road thi-ough the town, north and south, is a delightful one 
fur an easy carriage drive through Savoy, Windsor and Peru to Hinsdale. 

Whitcomb Brook flows east and joins the Deerfield River near the east 
portal of the Tunnel. One of the famous waterfalls in Berkshire is at 
this point, known as the Twin Cascades. Two tiny brooks join each 
other after their chase down the steep mountain sides and make a leap 
of nearly forty feet. 

On the east side near the Tunnel portal is a beautiful bit of scenery. 
The mountain rises abruptly, and away on the hillsides farm houses are 
seen as though they were fastened to the side of the mountain. At this 
portal there is a ravine which is quite charming. A few feet south of 
the entrance is seen distinctly what appears to be an immense auger hole, 
where the first attemjjt was made to bore through the mountain, by a 
huge machine. A fine dam was built a short distance up the river, and 
altogether the scenery, the narrow valley, the rushing river and other 
surroundings are well worth a visit. A path, several rods wide, leading 



218 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 



.directly over the mountain through the woods, is exactly over the Tun- 
nel and was made to assist in the engineering operations. 

On the east side of the town, down by the Deerfield River, is a lovely 
narrow valley, with the river as the east boundary; beyond, high on the 
bank, is the railway, and then the towering hills of the range in Frank- 
lin County. Here is the Hoosac Tunnel Station, and it is a pleasant 
drive down this valley through Zoar, to Charlemont, Shelburne Falls and 
thence to Greenfield. A good many summer people have sought rest 
and quiet at the Station. Jenks & Kice have a house for summer guests 
and can accommodate 50 or more very comfortably. Tlie Hoosac Tunnel 
House also accommodates a number of people. The village is easily 
reached by trains on the Fitchburg, and also the Xew Haven & North- 
ampton railroad. The place is also a resort for excursionists who 
spend the day very profitably about the tunnel and the works there. 
The Messrs. Newton have built a narrow gauge railroad running up the 
river to Readsboro, to which there is a delightful trip of a few hours, 
or a carriage drive up the valley is a pleasant recreation. 



CI^ARKSBURG. 



THE eastern boundary of the town is the Green Mountain range, or the 
Hoosacs, as they are termed here, and commanding peaks arise in 
all directions in that part of the town. The great mountain in the western 
part plainly seen from North Adams, with a dome-like summit and aim ist 
bald, affords one of the finest points of observation in Berkshire, 2,272 
feet high. The western part of the town has few or no roads, but the 
eastern i^art has drives and attractive scenery on every side. From any 
of the points, and especially the road from North Adams directly north 
through Houghtonville, the picture is grand, particularly toward the 
south when the summit is reached, 

The road from North Adams through Clarksburg is a romantic drive. 
Up Union street past the great printing works of the Freeman Manu- 
facturing Company, are other mills, like the Union, the Beaver, and 
so on following the stream, the Hoosac, to Briggsville, which is the real 
village of Clarksburg, where the postoffice is located. High mountains 
are on the east in Florida, and on the west the more fertile hills of the 
farms, while all along is a most delightful shade. This highway is the 
main road to Stamford and Bennington, Yt., a most charming day's out- 



THE BOOK OF BEBKSHIEE. 219 

ing. There is no hotel in the town suitable for resort. Here is neither 
church, doctor nor lawyer; North Adams being so near at all points that 
none are necessary, and, the inhabitants find their church affiliations 
either in that village or in Stamford, a few miles away. 

From North Adams, again, another pretty drive is up Eagle street, and on 
the high ground just above the village another view of the valley below 
is obtained. This drive of about four miles to its junction with the 
other road up the Hoosac branch, is a fine one. 

As yet no summer residents have come to Clarksburg; and while 
there are many fine farms in the town, the surface of which is broken 
and uneven, and though there are many good farm houses, architecture 
of modern style has obtained no foothold, and the town's best attraction 
is that which Nature has so profusely lavished on every hand and which 
is better appreciated by the sight than by a description. Its citizens are 
excellent people, and some of them would entertain guests in the 
quietude of their homes. 



^WII.I> FIvO^WER-S AT«» PLANTS. 

In these days of sestheticism, flower worship is a prominent character- 
istic of the times. Wild flowers that our forefathers passed by without 
regard, or knew not the existence of, are now eagerly sought. Berkshire 
has choice attractions in this line, for it is famous for having in plenty 
great varieties and many species and families of rare and beautiful wild 
flowers. 

There are only two plants poisonous to the touch — the i^oison ivy and 
the poison sumach, otherwise called dogwood. After the earliest spiing 
flower, the Hepatica (two varieties) comes Trailing Arbutus, which 
thrives hardly anywhere so well as in Berkshire. The Azalea is hardly 
out of bloom in the woodland, when some of the handsomest Ladyslip- 
pers to be found in the world are in blossom. Four kinds of these orchids 
are found — the Stemless Ladyslipper, the Small and the Large Yellow, 
and the magnificent Showy Ladyslipper. Among other orchids are the 
Showy Orchis and the Purple Fringed Orchis. There are in all 23 kinds of 
orchids. Of the two Anemones, the Woody blossoms in May and the Vir- 
ginia in June. Three kinds of Meadow Rue appear from May to July, the 
last being the most beautiful; during the same time four or more kinds 
of Buttercups appear. The Marsh Marigolds, or Cowslips, are plenty in 
wet places in May, when the Gold Thread, with its pretty white flower 
and golden roots is also seen. The spring brings the Wild Columbine, 



220 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 

commonly called Wild Honey Suckle, and the Red and White Baneberries. 
The Tulip tree, with its faint orange yellow large bell-shaped flower, 
blossoms in June, and the May Apple or Mandrake, is an edible July 
fruit. There are the White and Yellow Water Lilies, the Purple Pitcher 
Plant or Huntsman's Cup, of the bog, the Bloodroot of April and May in 
rich woods, the Dutchman's Breeches of May, two kinds of St. John's- 
wort in June, the early Spring Beauty and eight or nine Violets. The Herb 
Robert is a little geranium, and the Cranesbill is a variety of the same. 
There are two kinds of Jewel Weed, the Flowering Wintergreen, and five 
kinds of Clover. The Vicia Cracca is a climbing plant with purple flow- 
ers. Wild roses are numerous, the Purple Avens is found in three kinds, 
and the Shrubby Cinquefoil grows in neglected meadows. 

All berries are numerous — Strawberries, Blackberries, Dewberries, Red 
and Black Raspberries, Black and Blue Huckleberries, so that there is 
plenty of berries to eat all summer. The Hawthorne is the genuine May- 
flower, the Shadbush blossoms early, the Saxifrages may early be seen 
climbing on rocks. The Bishop's Cup comes out in May, the pink-purple 
Witton Herb is seen in August; there are two Orjiines, yellow and purple, 
and three or four brilliant yellow Evening Primroses. The Star Cucumber 
with its pretty flower in July and August, climbs ovei- bushes, the Aralia 
has a .June flower, the Carnel bushes have bright red berries, and there 
are yellow and red Wild Honeysuckles, the real, not the Columbine. 
Many of the fields are so thickly covered with Bluets all summer that they 
seem to have a reflection of the sky. 

Over 100 members of the Aster family are found here and over 20 
kinds of Golden Rod. Several varieties of the Lobelia are found, among 
them two or three of the blue, and the Cardinal flower, which may be 
found in Berkshire in greater quantities than elsewhere in all New Eng- 
land; this flower, with its bright cardinal tint, grows so plentiful that 
acres are colored with it, and an armful may be picked by one standing 
in one place. There are Bell Flowers and Indian Pipes, the latter in 
woods. The Heath family is very plenty; the Mountain Laurel, Sheep 
Laurel, Swamp Laurel and Azalea grow in all woodland. In woods there 
are three pretty varieties of the Pyrola. The red False Beech Drops are 
found in September in oak and pine woods, the Star flower is plenty, the 
Broom Rape has one flower and no leaves, and grows as a parasite from 
the roots of trees. There is the Snakehead, the Monkey flower that 
makes the road sides blue a quarter of a mile in a jilace, the Gerardia 
with its large yellow bells, and two wild Verbenas, blue and white, 
blossoming in July. 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 221 

The mints are numbered by over 20. The Viper's Bugloss has a bril- 
liant blue, the Hedge Bind Weed flowers in July, the Climbing Bitter- 
sweet shows its orange and scarlet berries in autumn, and three kinds 
of Gentian, one of them Fringed, are plenty in September. Buckwheat 
is found in ten varieties, the Iris is represented by two kinds of Blue 
Flag, Blue Eyed Grass is common, the Carrion flower comes out in June, 
the Trillium grows in three varieties — the Yellow, Purple and Painted. 
Indian Cucumber Root, three varieties of Bellwort, the Clintonia, a wild 
lily, Solomon's Seal in several kinds, several varieties of Wild Lilies,. 
Wild Lupine, Pickerel Weed, and Dog Tooth Violets are all found more 
or leiss plenty. 

Here are the Staghorn Sumach with its crimson spikes, the Crocus, the 
numerous Cat-tails, Exquisite Ferns, including Maidenhair, four kinds 
of Club Moss, commonly called Ground Pine, Tree Pine, Club Pine and 
Running Pine, Jacob's ladder, several kinds of Rushes, 83 kinds of 
Sedge Grasses and numerous Grasses and Rush Grasses; the Sassafras 
abounds, the Aromatic Wintergreen or Checkerberry, the crimson-purple 
Poke Berries, the Mountain Ash, Daisies in many varieties, the early 
Coltsfoot, Wild Sunflower, the Sidesaddle flower. Water cress, omni- 
present Frost Grape vines. Among the numerous nuts are the chestnut, 
butternut, walnut and hazelnut. Mosses grow in 60 varieties, and 
Lichens in many kinds. The Clematis, climbing over dark alders, be- 
comes beautiful in the nutumn, and in Williamstown a purple variety 
hag been found. The Witch Hazel blossoms close the flower season as 
late as December. There are nearly 200 kinds of trees in the county and 
about 1,100 varieties of wild plants. 

" If it be summer," writes Prof. Hitchcock, "these vast slopes are 
covered from base to summit with a vegetable dress, embracing every 
hue of green, from the dark hemlock and pine to the almost silvery 
whiteness of the white oak and poplar. If it be autumn, that same 
foliage, now assuming almost every color of the spectrum, and of hues 
almost as bright, presents one of the most splendid objects in nature." 



CIvIMAXE. 

THE air of Berkshire is dry, extremely pure and bracing. Its humidity 
is considerably less than that of sea coast air. The county is but lit- 
tle affected by the disagreeable east winds so much complained of along 
the Atlantic coast and interior of New England, east of the Connecticut- 
River. The wind is from the northwest through the day about half the year. 



222 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 



The autumn is later and the spring earlier in the county, south of 
Lenox, by one to two weeks, than in the region north. The following 
table which compares the temperature taken at Williams College at an 
altitude of 70S feet with the temperatures of several cities, shows a 
higher summer temperature than is found in many places in the county 
at places more exposed to cool winds and at greater elevations : 



PLACE. 


MEAN TEMPERATURE IN DEGREES. 


YEARS 
OF 




SPRING. 


SUMMER. 


AUTUMN. 


WINTER. 


WHOLE 
YEAR. 


OBSERV.-\- 
TION. 






College, 


43-44 


67.25 


47.36 


23.28 


45-33 


37 


Boston, . . . 


45.61 


6S.68 


51.04 


28.08 


48.35 


38 


Albany, . . 


46.54 


7043 


49.56 


25.26 


47-95 


46 


New York, . 


48.26 


72.62 


54-54 


31-93 


51-83 


22 


Philadelphia, 


50.07 


73- 


54- 


30-05 


52.01 


57 


Hartford, . . 


47.89 


69.7s 


51.7a 


29.89 


49.81 


17 



The summer temperature is from 1.43 to 5.75 degrees cooler at Wil- 
liams College than at the cities named — cities that send many of their 
residents hither at this time of the year ; and, on account of the dryness 
of the air here and the humidity of the air near the sea coast, the difference 
in summer and in all other seasons of the year is vastly greater, meas- 
ured by sensation, the feeling being much more comfortable in Berkshire 
whether in hot or cold temperature. 



popui^AXioN OF ririivciPAi^ to'wivs, 1885. 



Alford, 341 

Becket 938 

Cheshire, 1,448 

Dalton, 2,113 

Egremont, 826 

Gt. Harrington, (error in census) about 4,900 

Lanesboro, 1,212 

Lee, 4,274 

Lenox, 2,154 

Monterey, 571 

Mount Washington, .... 160 

New Marlboro', 1,661 

North Adams, 12,540 

Otis 703 



Pittsfield, 

Richmond, 

Sheffield, 2, 

Stockbridge, 2. 

Tryingham 



West Stockbridge, . . . . 1 

Williamstown, 3, 

Berkshire County, 32 towns, about 74 

18S0 CENSUS. 

Salisbury, Ct., 3. 

North Canaan, Ct., . . . . 1, 

Norfolk, Ct., 1! 

Hillsdale, N. Y., 1, 

New Lebanon, N. Y., . . . . 2, 



,466 
854 
,033 
,114 
457 
,648 
,729 
,000 

,715 
,537 
,418 
,939 
,245 



BHRKSHIRE'S TOPOGRAPHY. 

The Berkshire region is not quite confined to the county limits. Beyond 
these the clioicest extension is on the south three or four miles into 
Litchfield county Connecticut; on the west the country peculiar to Berk- 
shire goes a mile or so into New York; on the north Vermont is an infe- 
rior continuation of it; while on the east it is lost in a few miles in the 
western margin of the Connecticut river valley. Comprehending these 
narrow strips of country around the county of Berkshire, the region 
is about 55 miles long, and averages about 25 miles in width, and con- 
tains about 1,400 square miles. The natural features of the southern 
half of the county have been the most known to fame, but the northern 
half has many attractions, and recent local enterprise is bringing some of 
them to notice. 

The western boundary of the region is the Taconic Mountains, a nar- 
row range, which begins on the north at the Hoosac River valley and runs 
into hills in Connecticut on the south. The New York state line runs 
along these mountains. East of them is a composite valley, five to ten 
miles wide, unlike other large valleys and constituting the greatest 
source of Berkshire's beauty. Eastward of this is an extension of 
the Green Mountain range, about thirty miles wide, broken into many 
ranges and spurs by gorges and narrow valleys. The wild and picturesque 
are found in these ranges of mountains, but the beautiful belongs to the 
valley alone. 

Here, whatever way one looks, there is a mountain background, dark 
and harmonizing in tint with the intermediate landscape. The broad 
valley is called composite, because it is made up of hundreds of smaller 
valleys between spurs of the main mountain chains and isolated hills and 
mountains. The most conspicuous of these is Greylock Mountain, the 
highest in the state, which extends a few miles north and south and east 
and west and divides the north end of the great valley into two parts. 
The finest background is made by the Taconics in the southwest cor- 
ner of the county, where the Dome rises, the second highest moun- 
tain in the state. Every view is a symphony of many natural effects — of 
mountain range, of lake, of hill, of forest, of separate hills in all sorts of 
restful shapes, of ravine and pi-ecipice, of river and brook, of farm house, 



224 THE BOOK OF BERKSIIIBE. 



of meadowwith graceful elms, of country home of some city inhabitants — 
all combined to make a perfect whole, without imitation and without 
duplicate. Every observant visitor to Berkshire has noticed how sud- 
denly the views change and how radical the change often is. Governor 
John A. Andrews spoke of " the delicious surprises " of Berkshire rides; 
but he is only one of thousands who have remarked them. There are 
no two views in the broad valley or on the adjacent mountain slopes, 200 
yards apart, that do not i^ossess decidedly distinct differences; and places 
are very common where 50 steps will quickly change the scene as by the 
wand of magic. 

Just above the middle of this long valley rise the Housatonic and 
the Iloosac rivers, the one flowing north and northwest, and the other one 
flowing south, and both possessing many tributary streams to grace their 
valleys. Within the county are 55 natural lakes, principally in the 
southern half, and half as many artificial reservoirs, while in the narrow 
margin outside of the county there are twenty or thirty more lakes, mak- 
in"', in all, about 109 bodies of water that lend charm to the landscape 
and sport to the fisherman and boatman. The altitiide of the great val- 
ley at the south end is about 700 feet above the ocean; in the middle it is 
about 1,000 feet; at the foot of Greylock it is about 1,100, from which 
it descends considerably, northward. The mountain elevations range 
from 2,000 to .'j,500 feet, and are inhabited on nearly every square mile. 

In the following table of elevations, the village elevation is that of the 
railway station, where there is one. 

The elevations on the following pages must be taken as more or less cor- 
rect apijroximations. Those obtained by leveling, are from railroad sur- 
veys, which have started, some at tide, and others a few feet above, the 
number not being known, and such elevations apply to the track at the 
railway station of the village mentioned. The figures here given are not 
in all respects harmonious, though apjoarent errors are not great. Eleva- 
tions taken by barometer vary considerably, and it is only by repeated 
trials that accuracy is reached, which has not always been the case in this 
list. In the following table L means engineer's level; B means barometric 
measurement; (?) expresses some uncertainty. 



EI.EVAXIONS IN BHRKSHIRE. 



Greylock, 



ADAMS. 
Feet above tide. 1 
, . 3,535B I Spruce Mountain, 
BECKET. 



Feet above tide. 

2,588B 



Greenwater Pond, 
Viet's Summit, 



Becket 1,206L 

BecketHill 2,194B 

West Becket, .... 1,380L 

Shaw Pond, 1,380L 

CANAAN, CT. 

Canaan, Ct. 670L i Canaan Mountain, 

East Canaan, .... 790L | 

CLARKSBURG. 

Clarksburg Mountain, 

COPAKE IRON WORKS, N. Y. 
Copake Iron Works, N. Y., . . . 



Ward Pond, 1,GOOL 



Dalton, . 
Day Mountain, 



Hoosac Mountain, east summit 

over tunnel, 
Hoosac Tunnel, east portal. 



DALTON. 
1,197L I Mount Weston, . 
1,900(?) I 
FLORIDA. 

I Hoosac Tunnel, central shaft, 
Hoosac Tunnel, west portal, 



2,269L 

766L I 
GOSHEN, CT. 



Ivy Mountain, 



GREAT BARRINGTON. 



Great Barrington, 

Mount Bryant, .... 

Highest part of East Mountain, 

Berkshire Heights, 

Van Deusenville, .... 

Housatonic, 

Three Mile Hill 

Monument Mountain, . 
June Mountain, (Wildwood Cot- 
tage), 

June Mountain, (June's Spring,) 



723L 

],448B 

1,740B 

980B 

72CL 

749L 

930L 

1,260(?) 



865B 
958 B 
HANCOCK 



Water Company's Reservoir, east 

of river, 

Street at J. A. Brewer's house, . 
Street at Berkshire House, . 
Housatonic River Bridge near 

"Brookside," .... 
Green River Bridge, (Egremont 

Road), 

Summit in Highway south of 

Mark Laird's, .... 



Potter Mountain, 



Hillsdale, N. Y., 
15 



HILLSDALE, N. Y. 

670L I White's Hill, . 



1,373L 
],723L 



l,.oOOB 

2,272B 
670L 

2,200(?) 



829L 
766L 



1,640B 

793B 
704B 
716B 

672B 

C73B 

1,092B 

2,410B 
1,510B 



226 



THE BOOK OF BEBKSHIEE. 



HINSDALE. 

Feet above tide. 



Hinsdale, 



Feet above tide. 
1,430L 



Lee, 



LEE. 
865L I South Lee, 
LENOX. 



Lenox, .... 

Lenox Furnace, 

Lenox Furnace Mill Pond, 



QSTL 
937L 
934L 
LITCHFIELD, CT 



New Lenox, or Dewey's, 
Yokun's Seat, 



Litchfield Hills, 

MONTEREY. 

Monterey 1,230L | Lake Garfield, 

MOUNT WASHINGTON. 



The Dome, 

Fray Mountain, 
Mount Alandar, 
Race Mountain, 
Cedar Mountain, 
Sunset Mountain, 



New Marlboro, 



West Mountain, 
Bear Rock, 
Isaac Spurr's, 
O. C. Whitbeck's, 
Mount Ethel, 



2,634B 
1,915B 
2,200B 
2,300B 
l,7r5B 
1,790B 

NEW MARLBORO. 
1,470L I Lake Buel 
NORFOLK, CT. 



Norfolk, 1,250L 

Haystack Mountain, . . . 1,670B 
Button Hill 1,632B 



Bald Mountain, 
West Norfolk, 
Norfolk Summit, 



NORTH ADAMS. 



North Adams, 



NORTHEAST, N. Y. 



Rudd Pond, 



Otis 

West Otis, .... 
East Otis, .... 
Otis Reservoir, (Rand Pond,) 



OTIS. 
1,290L 
1,350L 
1,440L 
1,480L 



Great Pond, . 
Parish Pond, . 
Thomas Pond, 
Cold Spring, . 



PERU. 



French Hill, 



Pittsfield, 



Richmond, 



PITTSFIELD. 
1,013L I South Mountain, 
RICHMOND. 
1,046L I Perry's Peak, 



843L 



977L 
2,080B 



1,200 



1,250L 



2,300B 
1,575B(?) 
1,653B(?) 
1,698B(?* 
1,833B(?) 



900(?) 

1,770B 

1,080L 
1,335L 

701 L 
796L 

1,540L 
1,515L 
1,620L 
1,200L 

2,239B 
1,870B 

2,059 B 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 



227 







SALISBURY, CT. 






Feet above tide. 


Feet above tide. 


Salisbury, 




690L 


Monument Mountain, . 


. 2,300B(?) 


North Pond, ( Mt. Riga), 




1,732B 


Lion's Head, .... 


1,67" B 


Round Pond, (Mt. Riga) 


, . 


1,722B. 


Bald Peak, .... 


2,OO0B 


Water Shed, west of Round Pond, 


1,760B 


Bear Mountain, 


2,250B 


Lake Wononscopomuc, 




723 


Ore Hill, .... 


830L 


Barac Matiff , . 




1,250B 


Lakeville, .... 


720L 


Prospect Mountain, 




1,450B 


Twin Lakes, 


740L 


Indian Mountain, . 




1,360B 


Foley's Summit, H. &C.W. R. 


R. 772L 






SANDISFIELD. 




Seymour Mountain, 




1,698B 


Montville, .... 


1,300L 


South Sandisfield, 




1,350L 


West New Boston, 


1,010L 


Upper Spectacle Pond, 




1,575L 


New Boston, .... 


980L 


Lower Spectacle Pond, 




1,540L 










SHEFFIELD. 




Sheffield, 




675L 


Red Bridge at Kelloggtown, 


648B 


Bridge, Sage's House at 


Ravine, 


783B(?) 


Summit Pitcher's Notch, 


719B 


Ashley Falls, 


* 


683L 


State Line, Housatonic R. R. 


, . 690L 




SOUTH EGREMONT. 




-South Egremont, 






TOOL 






STOCKBRIDGE. 




"Main Street, . 


• 


833L 1 Glendale, .... 
TYRINGHAM. 


826L 


"Fernside," . 


• 


1,160(?) 1 Mountain near "Fernside," 
WASHINGTON. 


. ■2,200(?) 


Washington, . 


. 


1,436L 1 Highest Railroad Point, . 


1,451L 




WEST STOCKBRIDGE. 




West Stockbridge, 




901L State Line, .... 


913L 


Williamsville, ' . . 


■ 


798L Rockdale Mills, . 
WILLIAMSTOWN. 


840L 


Williamstown, 


, 


594L 


Sunset Rock, 


1,992B 


Berlin Mountain, . 




2,814B 


Berlin Pass, ... 


2,192B 


State Line, Mass. & Vt., 


(Troy & 




Petersburg Mountain, . 


2,5;i4B 


Greenfield R. R.) . 


• 


577L 


Petersburg Pass, . 


. 2,075B 


Williams College, (Old Observ- 




East Mountain, (copper bolt,) 


. 2,27(5B 


atory,) . . , , 




708L 


Stone Hill, .... 


• 1,086B 


Mount Hopkins, . 




2,793 (?) 


Summit between Williamstow 


m, 


Greylock, center peak. 


• 


2,591 B 


and Hancock on highway, 


1,215L 


Bald Mountain, 




2,597B 







SOIMH OF THE DRIVES ANO DISTANCES 

In and Around Bebkshike. 

SUCH are the extraordinary prof usion and variety of Berkshire charms 
that the drives are hmited only by the roads. Hardly a drive can be 
found that is not worthy of note. However, there are some drives that are 
particularly desirable and these are embraced in the following tables. It is 
a happy fact, most strikingly found in Berkshire, that, no matter what 
way one drives, he may return by some other route that does not vary 
much in distance from that of the outgoing route, so that the scene is 
constantly changing to the very end. For the benefit of tourists, on 
foot, with horse, or wheel, distances between towns on the main lines of 
travel are given. All routes mentioned are the most direct, unless other- 
wise specified. There are numerous fine short drives of two to five miles 
near each village, which it is unnecessary to mention. 
FROM PITTSFIELD. 



Potter Mountain, .... 

Hancock, via Potter Mountain, 

Balanced Rock, .... 

Lanesboro, via Pontoosuc Lake, 

Constitution Hill, in Lanesboro, 

New Ashford, via Lanesboro, 

South Williamstown, via Lanesboro 
and New Ashford, .... 

Williamstown, via Lanesboro, New 
Ashford and South Williamstown, 

Williamstown, return via North 
Adams, Adams, Cheshire, Berk- 
shire and Coltsville, .... 

Adams, via Cheshire, ... 

North Adams, through the Hoosac 
Valley 

Cheshire, via Lanesboro, and over 
the hill keeping west of the reservoir, 
return via east side of the reservoir, 
Berkshire, Coltsville, 

Lanesboro, thence to the road to 
Cheshire, crossing the reservoir to 
the east about midway its length, 
return via Berkshire Glass Works, 

Berkshire Glass Works, 



Miles. 

9 

11 

4 

5 



20 



Miles. 

Boulder Trains, Richmond, . . 8 

Perry's Peak, Richmond, ... 9 
Queechy Lake, Canaan, N. Y., via 

Richmond, 12 

Queechy Lake, north through Leba- 
non Valley to Mt. Lebanon Shakers, 

return, -25 

Onota Lake, 2 

Pontoosuc Lake north end, to Balanced 

Rock, return, 9 

Craneville, 5 

Dalton, via Coltsville, ... 6 

Dalton, via Junction and Bartonville, 7 

Wahconah Falls, via Dalton, . . 9 

Windsor Hill, via Dalton, ... 13 

Peru meeting house, .... 17 

Worthington, via Peru, ... 23 

West Cummington, via Windsor Hill, 22 

Goshen and Plainfield, ... 25 

Cummington, 23 

Hinsdale, via new county road from 

Dalton, 9 

Hinsdale, via Dalton village street, 11 

Hinsdale, via back road, ... 12 

Ashley Lake, 5 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIKE. 



229 



FROM PITTSFIELD.— (Continued.) 



Miles. 

The Gulf and Wizard's Glen, . . 4 

Dalton meeting house, west through 
the Gulf and Wizard's Glen, return, 10 

Lanesboro, Berkshire, and return, 13 
Pontoosuc, Z. Crane, Jr's., farm, 
Oren Benedict's, .... 4 

Pontoosuc, farms of Z. Crane, Jr., 
and W. F. Milton, Coltsville and 
return, 6 

Pontoosuc, W. F. Milton's, north 
past Thomas Barber's to the road 
running from Berkshire to Lanes- 
boro, Lanesboro and return, . . 7 

Shaker Promised Land, via West 
street, north through a delightfully 
romantic part of the town, return, 8 

Lebanon Springs, directly over the 
mountain, 7 

Lebanon Springs, return via Lebanon 
Shakers, through Hancock Shaker 
community, Barkerville, and 
Stearnsville, ...... 17 

Lebanon Shakers, via Hancock 
Shakers, 8 

Hancock Shakers, .... 4 

Lulu Cascade, 4 

Berry Pond, 5 

West street to Francis place, Stearns- 
ville and return, .... 5 

West Stockbridge, via Barkerville 
and Richmond, . . . . 11 

Richmond Congregational church, . 7 

FROM 

Pittsfield, 6 

Pittsfield, return via east road, . . 14 
Pittsfield, return via mountain road. 

New Lenox, 16 

Lanesboro, 13 

Williamstown, 26 

North Adams, 26 

Adams, 20 

Cheshire, 16 

Dalton, (railway station), ... 12 

Lebanon Shakers, .... 9 

Lebanon Shakers, return via Pittsfield, 21 



Miles. 

Washington church, .... 7 

Washington, at the "City," . . 10 
Washington, via direct road east, to 
Washington Station, return via the 

"City," Ashley Lake, ... 22 

Becket, via Washington, ... 18 

Barkerville, 3 

Barkerville, via Stearnsville, turn 

east, return via upper or hill road, 6 
South Mountain, and "Broadhall," on 

Lenox road, 2 

Lenox, 6 

Stockbridge, via Lenox, ... 12 

Stockbridge, via Curtisville, . . 13 

Lake Mahkeenac, 8Ji 

Lee, via Lenox 11 

Lee, via Lenox, return via Lenox 

Furnace, 20 

Tyringham, via Lee, .... 16 
"Fernside" (Tryingham), via South 

Lee ir 

Otis, via Lee 23 

Lenox, return via old Lebanon turn- 
pike. West Stockbridge road, . 16 
Around Onota Lake, out via North 

Woods, return via Peck's, . . 6 
Greylock Mountain, via Cheshire, . 16 
Barkerville, Branch's Corners, Han- 
cock Shakers, return, ... 9 

Cemetery 2 

Tory Glen, 5 

Mount Weston, Dalton, ... 8 

LENOX. 

West Stockbridge 6 

State Line, via West Stockbridge, . 9 

Chatham, via West Stockbridge, . 20 

West Stockbridge, Richmond, return, 15 

Richmond Hill, 9 

Richmond, Barkerville, Pittsfield, 

return, 16 

West Mountain Drive, ... 10 

Under West Mountain Drive, . . 5 

Over Bald Head Mountain, return, . 7 
Higginson's Corner, "Highwood," 

return, 4)^ 



230 



THE BOOK OF BEKKSHIKE. 



FROM LENOX 
Miles. 

Lebanon Springs, .... 12 

Lebanon Springs, return via Pittsfield, 25 

New Lenox, 4}^ 

New Lenox, return via Lenox Sta- 
tion, . ■ . ■ 11 

Lenox Station 2}4 

Lenox Furnace, . ' ' . . . 2-^ 
Leno.x Furnace, return via Lenox 

Station, 6 

Lee, 4 

Lee, return via Lenox Furnace, . 10 
Washington Mountain, via Leno.x 

Furnace, return via New Lenox, 18 
Lee, return via "Highlawn Farm," 

Stockbridge road, . . . . 10 
Tyringham, via Lee, return via Soutli 

Lee, 20 

East Lee, return via Lenox Furnace, 14 

Femside, 9 

Femside, return via Lee, ... 19 
Stockbridge; via Lee, return, • . . 15 
Stockbridge, return via lake road, . 13 
Stockbridge, return via Curtisville, . 14 
Stockbridge, return via West Stock- 
bridge, 16 

Curtisville, ' 414 

Around Lake Mahkeenac, ... 10 

Curtisville, West Stockbridge, return, 14 

Glendale, via Stockbridge, return, . 16 

Housatonic, . . . . ■ . . 10 

Great Barrington, via river road, . 15 

Great Barrington, via Stockbridge, . 14 
West Stockbridge, Williamsville, 

Housatonic, return, .... 22 



. — (Continued.) 

Miles. 

Lake Mahkeenac, . . . . SJ^ 

Lily Pond, IH 

Laurel Lake, 3 

'"Highlawn Farm," .... 4 
Bradley's Corner, Palmer's, return via 

Lake Mahkeenac, ... 11 

Rathbone's, Dorr's, return, . . 5 
Rathbone's, Dorr's, return via Lenox 

Station road, ■ . ■ . . . . 6 
Lebanon Road, via Happy Valley, to 

Bradford's, return, .... 5}^ 
Through "Cliffwood" Park, . . 4 to 6 
Curtis's Farm, to the Lenox Furnace 

road, return, 5^ 

Sand's place. Lake Mahkeenac,return, 6J^ 
Lanier's farm, private road to Stock- 
bridge road, Thomson's private 

road to Lee roa-d, return) . . . ^^ 

Bashbish, 27 

Bashbish, return via river road, . 55 

The Dome of the Taconics, . . 27 
Twin Lakes-, East Side, . . .27 

Sheffield, 20 

Salisbury, ■.■.-.■.•. . 30 

Otis, . . . • . . . . 16 
Hartford, via Lee, Otis, New Boston, 

Colebrook, . . . ■ . . 60 
Hudson, via West Stockbridge, State 

Line, Canaan, Chatham,- Ghent, . 32 
Albany, via Lebanon, Brainard's 

Bridge, Nassau, • . . . . 40 
Springfield, via Lee, Becket, Bland- 
ford, Westfield, .... 42 



FROM STOCKBRIDGE. 



Lee, over hill, 

Lee, via river, ... 

Pittsfield, -.■.■.-. 

Great Barrington, 

Great Barrington, via Glendale, 

Glendale, . . , . 

Housatonic, .... 

West Stockbridge, 

" Fernside," .... 

Tyringham, Hop Brook road, • 



4 
5 
12 

9 

1^ 
4 

5 



Curtisville, through Lake Averic, 
base of West . Stockbridge moun- 
tain, return byturapike 7 

W. Stockbridge, via. Williams River, 
Fuary's Quarries, Glendale, return, 12 

LakeBuel, . . 10 

Lake Mahkeenac, (Sayles's), ... 3 

Lake Averic, 3 

Monterey, via Monument Valley, 
Blue Hill, return via Beartown, . 18 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIBE. 



231 



FROM STOCKBRIDGE.-(Continued.) 



Curtisville, 

Lebanon Shakers, ... 

Bashbish, 

The Dome of the Taconics, 
North end of Lake Mahkeenac, . 
Around Lake Mahkeenac, . 
Glendale, return through Mr. Butler's 
Around Monument Mountain, . 

Lenox, 

Lenox, via Lake Mahkeenac, 
Lenox, via Curtisville, . 
Monument Valley to Blue Hill, 
W Stockbridge, ret. via L Mahkeenac 



Miles. 
3 
18 



21 

21 
4 
8 
3 

10< 
6 
7 
8 
5 

13 



Miles. 



Perry's Peak, via West Stockbridge, 
Richmond, ret. via W. Stockbridge, 

Richmond Church, via West Stock- 
bridge, return, 

Monument Mountain, return via 
Smith Farm, (horseback ride) , 

Monument Mountain, summit, . 

Long Lake, via Glendale, Housa- 
tonic, Williamsville, return via Van 
Deusenville, Monument Mountain, 

Lenox, via Lee, return direct, . 

"Highlawn Farm," .... 



18 



FROM GREAT BARRINGTON. 



Stockbridg-", . . . . 
South Lee, . . . . 

Lee, 

Lee, via South Lee, 

Lenox, 

Pittsfield, . . . . 

Housatonic, . 

Glendale, . . . . 

Curtisville, . . . . 

West Stockbridge, 

North Egremont, 

South Egremont, 

Mount Washington, P. O., 

New Marlboro, 

Otis Center, .... 



Monterey, 

Mill River, 

Sheffield, 

Clayton, 

Ashley Falls, 

Canaan, Ct., 

Canaan Camp Meeting Grounds, 
Norfolk, Ct, . . .... 

Winsted, Ct., . . . 

Salisbury, Ct., ..." 

Lakeville, Ct., 

Millerton, N. Y., 

Hillsdale, N. Y., 

Hudson, N. Y., 

Springfield, via Sandisfield, New Bos- 
ton, Tolland, Granville, Southwick, 



7^ 
9 

14 

20 

5 

7 

9 

10 

5 

4 

10 

9 

16 

8 

8 

6 

11 

10 

12 

14 

18 

26 

15 

17 

22 

10 

27 

42 



Otis Reservoir, 

Lake Buel, 

Lake Buel, return via Brush Hill, 

New Marlboro, return via Brush Hill, 

Lake Garfield, . . 

Stockbridge, Lenox, return via Lake 
Mahkeenac, Stockbridge, Glendale, 

Stockbridge, Leno.x, return via Cur- 
tisville, 

"Highlawn Farm," . . . . 

Monument MountaiRj Sunimit, . 

Williamsville, return via Long Lake, 

Alford, via new road, return via old 
road, 

Alford, return around Tom Ball 
mountain, via marble quarries, 
WiUiamsville, . ... 

Green River, N. Y., via Seekonk, re- 
turn via North Egremont, 

Prospect Lake, 

White's Hill, via North Egremont, . 

White's Hill, via Seekonk, Dr.Beebe's, 
return via North Egremont, . 

North Egremont, via Seekonk, re- 
turn via Egremont Plain, 

Mount Washington, Whitbeck's, Sun- 
set Mountain, . . 

The Dome Summit, via Walsh place, 

Bashbish, 

Bashbish, return via Copake Iron 
Works, Hillsdale 



19 
5 to 6 
14 
22 
10 

29J4 
28 

11 
11 



17 



16 

10 

11 
14 

14 

29 



232 



THE BOOK OF 15ERKSHIRE. 



FROM GREAT BARRINGTON.— Continued. 



M:12s 
Springfield, via Monterey, Otis, 
Blandford Center, Westfield, . . 42 

Westfield, 32 

Stockbridge, return via Glendale, . 16 
Stockbridge, Curtisville, and return, 18 
Between Slieffield and Great Barring- 
ton tliere are seven roads — the mead- 
ow (6 miles) , east (7) , Brush Hill (8) , 
west (7) , So. Egremont (9) , So. Egre- 
mont and " Bowwow" (10) , So. 
Egremont and under mountain (15), 
21 round trips by different roads, 13 to 23 
Six roads to cross roads, between Great 
Barrington and Sheffield, 15 round 

trips, 7 to 14 

Clayton, return via Ashley Falls, 

Sheffield, 23 

Tipping Rock, via Mill River, return 
via Southfield, New Marlboro, Lake 
Buel, 26 



Miles. 
Bear Rock, via Mount Washington, 15 
Bear Rock, via Sheffield roads, . . 13 
Bear Rock, via Mount Washington, 

return via Sheffield roads, . . 28 

Sage's Ravine, 12 

Sage's Ravine, return via Chapinville, 

Cooper Hill, 27 

Twin Lakes, east side, ... 13 

Twin Lakes, between the lakes, 

Gardner's, 

North Egremont, via Seekonk, return 

via Baldwin Hill, Egremont Plain, 
Around Mount Riga, via South 

Egremont, Mount Washington, 

Bashbish, Copake Flats, near 

Millerton, Lakeville, 
North Egremont, Prospect Lake, 

turn to right at J. L. Millard's, top 

of moimtain, return via Ox Bow 

summit, Baldwin Hill, ... 14 



14 



12 



48 



FROM SHEFFIELD. 



nd 



Sage's Ravine, 

Twin Lakes, East Side, . 

Twin Lakes, between lakes. 

Babes' Hill, . 

Salisbury, Ct., 

Lakeville, Ct., 

Millerton, N. Y., . 

Canaan, Ct., . 

Canaan Camp Meeting Gro: 

Ashley Falls, 

New Marlboro, 

Mill River, 

Campbell's Falls, . 

Norfolk, Ct 

Winsted, Ct., 

Falls Village, Ct., 

Clayton, 

Clayton, via East road, 

Clayton, via East road, return 

Mill River, . . 

Bashbish, via Guilder Hollow, . 
Bashbish, via Sage's Ravine, 



The Dome, 14 

South Egremont, .... 5 

Lake Buel, ...... 7 

Lake Buel, return via Great Barring- 
ton, 19 

Under the Mountain, Chapinville, 

return via Cooper Hill, . . . 1.") 
Wetaug, over South End Ashley 

Mountain to Twin Lakes, return, . 10 
Tipping Rock, via Mill River, return 

via Southfield, New Marlboro, . 17 
Guilder Hollow, via "Bowwow," re- 
turn Under Mountain, . . . 14 

Mossy Glen, 4 

Sunset Hill, 3 

White's Hill, 10 

Prospect Lake, 8 

Ice Gulf 5 

Spurr Lake, 3 

Six round drives over 4 roads to cross 
roads towards Great Barrington, 7 to 12 



For drives to Great Barrington, see Great Barrington 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 



233 



FROM SOUTH EGREMONT. 

Miles. 



Prospect Lake, 3X 

White's Hill, 6 

North Egremont, .... 3 
North Egremont, return via Baldwin 

Hill, 7 

Sage's Ravine, 8 

Hillsdale, N. Y 6 

Twin Lakes, between the lakes, . 11 

Twin Lakes, East Side, ... 12 

Salisbury, Ct., 12 



Green River Village, , . . . 

North Egremont, Prospect Lake, 
turn to the right at J. L. Millard's, 
top of mountain, return via summit 
of Ox Bow, under mountain road, 

Sheffield, 

Sheffield, via under mountain road, 
return, 

Guilder Hollow, Jug End, Frank 
Curtis's, return, 



Miles. 
7 



The Great Barrington drives can nearly all be made from South Egremont; for distance 
add or subtract 4 or 8 miles, where necessary. 



North Adams, 

North Adams by one route, return 
the other, 

■Cheshire, 

Cheshire, east road, return via west 
side of valley, 

Williamstown, via the Notch road, . 

Williamstown, via North Adams, 

Williamstown, via Notch road, return 
via North Adams and east road, 

Pittsfield, either via Cheshire and the 
Glass Works, or keeping west of the 
reservoir through Lanesboro, . 

Go out by one of the routes to Pitts- 
field, and return the other. 

Savoy, (fine twilight drive). 

North Savoy, via North Hoosac 
street, 

Stamford, Vt., 



FROM ADAMS. 

The Afternoon and Sunset drive, via 
North Savoy, through Florida, 
with a view of the Deerfield val- 
ley, returning via North Adams 
and back to Adams, .... 

New Ashford, via Cheshire and then 
over the hills, 

Continue this drive through New 
Ashford, South Williamstown and 
Williamstown and back via the 
Notch road, 

West Cummington, .... 

Cummington, 

Greylock Hall in Williamstown, 

Lanesboro, via Cheshire, 

To Cross Road north of Howlands, 
via west road, return on east road, 

Windsor Hill 

Stafford's Hill, 



30 



FROM 
Williamstown, either by Greylock 

Village or Blackinton, 
Adams, either the east or west road, 
Adams, via east road, return west 

road, 

Summit of Greylock, via The Notch, 

Adams, via the Notch road, 

Stamford, Vt., three routes. This 

drive north through North Eagle 

street ; or via Weslyan Hill road, or 

through the Union, or the Beaver, 



NORTH ADAMS. 

Hartwellville, Vt., via Stamford, Vt., 

Readsboro City, Vt., via Hartwell- 
ville, Vt., and Stamford, Vt., . 

West Summit of Hoosac or Florida 
Mountain, over Tunnel, . 

Central Shaft of Tunnel, . 

East Summit of Florida Mountain, 
over Tunnel, 

Hoosac Tunnel Station and Jenks 
& Rice's Hotel, .... 

Pittsfield 



10 



10 



17 



234 



THE BOOK OF BEKKSHIEE. 



FROM NORTH ADAMS.— (Continued.) 



To the Cascade, in The Notch, . 

Natural Bridge, . . . " . 

Readsboro, Vt., to east end of Tun- 
nel, return over the Hoosac range 
via Florida, 

Sadawga Springs^ Vt., via Stamford, 
Hartwellville and Readsboro City, 

Jacksonville, Vt., via Readsboro City, 

Wilmington, Vt., .... 

Bennington, Vt., via Pownal, 

West Portal ©f the Hoosac Tunnel, 
or the West Shaft, . . . . 

West Portal of Tunnel, along the 
base of the mountain, return to 
village through Main street, . 

Go east from the village to the "Five 
Roads," or "Five Points,"' north 
through Clarksburg, along base of 
mountain, return via the Beaver 
and the Union, 



Miles. 



Miles. 



Pittsfield, vi^ east road, leaving out 
Adams village to Cheshire, then on 
east side of reservoir to Glass 
Works and the Junction, return 
via Lanesboro, . over hill on west 
side of reservoir, through Cheshire, 
then on west road to Adams, 
Zylonite, 

Pittsfield, via South William stown 
and Lanesboro, .... 

Pittsfield, via South Williamstown, 
Lanesboro, return via Cheshire, 

Lanesboro, ..... 

Cheshire, 

South Williamstown, ' , . . 

Greylock Hall, following the river 
all the way, . . ^ , , . 

Greylock Hall, return via Williams- 
town village, 



FROM WILLIAMSTOWN. 



Berlin Mountain, 

Petersburg Mountain, 

(The "Snow Hole," is two miles be- 
yond Petersburg Mountain.) 

Mason's Hill, return, . 

Bennington, Vt., via Pownal, . 

North Adams, either by Greylock 
Village, or by Blackinton, 

To the Notch, above and east of 
North Adams, .... 

The Cascade, in the Notch, 

Summit of Greylock, via new road of 
the Park Association, 

South Williamstown, three roads, 

South Williamstown, via the "Ob- 
long," 

Around the "Oblong" (Short), . 

Lebanon Springs, via Hancock, 

Mount Lebanon Shaker Village, 

Over Potter Mountain, Lanesboro, 
return via New Ashford, South Wil- 
liamstown, 

Pittsfield, via New Ashford and 
Lanesboro, ... 



14 



7 
4% 

9 

9 

2 

20 



32 



For a day's driving one of these routes 
is taken out and the other back. 

North Pownal, Vt., . ' . 

Hoosac Corners 

Hoosac Falls, N. Y., .... 

Stamford, ^'t., via North Adams, 

East end of Hoosac Tunnel, 

Central Shaft of the Hoosac Tunnel, 

Notch road to Adams, 

Same route out, return through the 
valley via North Adams, . 

Adams, via North Adams, . 

New Ashford 

Bald Mountain, near Greylock, 

To "The Hopper," .... 

To the Notch, returning via Bray- 
tonville and Blackinton, . 

Northwest Hill, return via Pownal, 

Macomber Hill, turning to the left a 
mile from Berlin Mountain, . 

To the "White Oaks," on the east 
side of the river, going northeast 
and returning via the Professor 
Hopkins chapel, .... 



40 



45 
15 
10 



la 



45 
8 
14 
IT 
10 
19 
8J^ 



THE BOOK OF BEKKSHIRE. 



23* 



FROM WILLIAMSTOVVN.— (Continued.) 



Hancock, 

Pittsfield, via North Adams 
Hoosac Valleyto Cheshire, 



Miles. 
13 



and 



Miles. 
Bennington, Vt., return via Pownal, 13 
Mt. Anthony, via Pownal, . . 12 

Mt. Anthony, via Bennington, Vt., . IS 



FROM SALISBURY, CT. 



13 
414 



iO]4 



Around Twin Lakes, . . . . 11 

Between Twin Lakes, return via 
Chapinville, ..... 7 

Between Twin Lakes, return via 
East road, 11 

Between Twin Lakes, return via un- 
der mountain road, . . . . 8 

Around Twin Lakes, via under 
mountain road, .... 

Sage's Ravine, 

Sage's Ravine, return via between 
Twin Lakes, 

Canaan road to Frink's Hill, Knapp 
road Canaan Falls, return, . . 1? 

Canaan Falls, Lime Rock, return, . li 

Around Lake Wononscopomuc, . 1 

Around Lake Wononscopomuc, re- 
turn via Rose Hill, 1.- 

Mount Riga, via Rossiter Hollow, 
. return via Selleck Hill, ... It 

Mount Riga, via Rossiter Hollow, 
return via Selleck Hill, Lincoln 
City, ....... 11 

Mount Riga, via Rossiter Hollow, 
return via West road, Lakeville, . Vi 

Over Selleck Hill, return via Lincoln 
City, . ' 4 

Sharon Village, via Lakeville, east 
side Lake Wononscopomuc, Town 
Hill, return via Mudge Lake, Lake- 
ville, V, 



Prospect Mountain, . . . . 

Sharon Village, same way out, return 
via Indian Lake, Old Ore Hill, 
Lakeville, 

Sharon Village, same way out, over 
Sharon Mountain to Housatonic 
River at Cornwall Bridge, return 
via Lime Rock, 

Sharon Village, same way out, South 
Amenia, Leedsville, Sharon Val- 
ley, return via Mudge Lake, . 

West Cornwall, via Lime Rock, re- 
turn via Cream Hill, 

Cornwall Bridge, via west side of 
river, Cornwall Plains, Mohawk 
Mountain, Cream Hill, return, 

Bashbish, via Rossiter Hollow, Mount 
Riga, return via Copake, Rudd 
Pond, 

The Dome, via Rossiter Hollow, 
Mount Riga, return via South 
Egremont, 

The Dome, 

Bear Mountain, via Rossiter Hollow, 
Mount Riga, 1 mile beyond, path 
of ha.f mile, 

Bear Rock, 

Bear Rock, return via Mount Riga, . 

Winchell Hill, (3 miles west of Mil- 
lerton) , return via Bird Hill, . 

Sheffield, 



35. 



3a 



37 



41 

IT 



These drives are all made from Lakeville; for distance, add or subtract 1}4 or 3 
where necessary. 

FROM CANAAN, CT. 



18 
10 

miles 



Dutcher's Bridge, east side Twin 
Lakes, return via Cooper Hill, We- 
taug, 

Dutcher's Bridge, between Twin 
Lakes, return via Cooper Hill, We- 
taug, 

Sage's Ravine, 



13 



Norfolk, T 

East Canaan, Clayton, return, . . 10 
East Canaan, Whiting River Fill, 

Clayton, return, .... 12 

Campbell's Falls, .... 7J4 

The Dome, via South Egremont, . 20 

Around Rattlesnake Hill, ... 4 



230 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 



FROM CANAAN, 
Miles. 

Around Twin Lakes, through Chap- 
inville, 

Dutcher's Bridge, west side river to 
Canaan Falls, return east side. 

There are 4 roads to Falls Village- 
west, east, west of railroad, under 
Canaan Mountain — affording 6 
drives, 12 to 14 



C T. — (C ontinued. ) 



Miles. 



18 



13 



Campbell's Falls, via East Canaan, 
Whiting River Fill, return via 
Clayton, 

Sheffield, 

Salisbury, 

Canaan Mountain Pond, via Norfolk, 

Canaan Mountain Pond, return via 
South Canaan 



Around Haystack Mountain, 

Doolittle Pond, 

Canaan Mountain Pond, 

■Canaan Mountain Pond, return via 

South Canaan, Canaa", . 

Winsted, 

Winsted, return via Grantville, 

South Norfolk, 

Winchester, 

Winchester, return via Winsted, 
The 5 mile square drive southwest 

of the village 

Ivy Mountain Tower in Goshen, 



FROM NORFOLK, CT. 

Ivy Mountain, return via Cream 
4 Hill, Canaan, 

4 Mohawk Mountain Tower, 
Colebrook, 

20 Colebrook, return via North Cole- 

5 brook, Doolittle Pond, . 
18 Canaan, 

4 Canaan Mountain, .... 
9 Campbell's Falls, .... 

20 Ashley Falls, via Campbell's Falls, . 
Litchfield, ' 

5 Hartford, 

10 Great Barrington, .... 



15 



20 



Trips to Twin Lakes, Salisbury and Lakeville are made by cars. 

Trips to the Dome, Bear Mountain, Sage's Ravine, Bashbish, are made by cars to Salis- 
bury, where teams are got. 




e^ IS its due. 



A HASXY XOUR XHROUGH BERKSHIRE). 

With Some of its Main Features. 

HE year 1885 showed a marked increase in tbe- 
number of tourists through Berkshire ; in- 
cluding in the term, those who made a tour 
of the region with horse and carriage, or on 
foot, on horseback, or with bicycle. The 
tourist, however, has a very faint 
idea of the real Berkshire ; it is only 
those who live here for a whole 
season, at least, who begin to have 
an appreciation of the region that 
No one should come here 
expecting to be startled by awful forms 
of nature. Berkshire has a few of these, but one must go elsewhere to 
find them abundant. The scenes here are beautiful and picturesque, 
interspersed with wildness, and to appreciate such scenes requires a 
more refined taste than to stand in awe of bold and imposing effects. 
But the tourist who does not hurry, and who will take excursions from 
the main lines of travel, will much enjoy his Berkshire journey. The 
remarkably fine condition of the roads are very favorable to agreeable 
travel in all ways, and the choice keeping at hotels will alone do much 
toward putting the traveler in good humor. 

The Berkshire region is entered on the north through Bennington, Vt. ; 
on the northeast over the Florida Mountains at the Hoosac Tunnel ; on 
the east up the Westfield Kiver to Pittsfield, or from Westfield or 
Springfield over the hills to Lenox, Stockbridge, Great Barrington or 
Sheffield; on the southeast, through Winsted, Ct., to the outpost at 
Norfolk; on the south by the Housatonic River valley in Connecticut ; on 
the southwest through Millerton, N. Y. ; on the west to the south end of 
the county through Hillsdale, N. Y., to the middle through Chatham, N. 
Y., and to the north end through Hoosac Falls, N. Y., on the northwest. 
The terminus of the tour through the region should be Salisbury or Nor- 
folk in Connecticut on the south, and Williamstown or North Adams on 
the north. In the following outline, village attractions, and others that 



238 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 

take but little time or may be seen in passing, are not mentioned, and 
only such principal matters are referred to as a tourist would most like 
to see, with not time enough to see all. A reading of the town articles 
may discover other objects of interest. 

Beginning at the south end, no one should neglect to visit Salisbury 
and see the lake at Lakeville, the Twin Lakes, Washinee and Washining, 
get some of the views from the mountain tops and enjoy some of the 
beautiful drives of the region. Sage's Ravine lies near the state line on 
the way to Sheffield and, near by, a steep road goes vip the mountain 
to Bear Rock, about a mile from the main road. After a sufficient stay in 
Sheffield, the east road to Great Barrington should be taken. Here 
several days can well be utilized. One should walk to East Rock, 
Belcher's Cave, Berkshire Heights south of the pine grove. Among the 
drives that must be taken are those to White's Hill, to Lake Buel and 
Ice Gulf, to Monument Mountain, and an excursion of two days should 
be made to Mount Washington, one day for the Dome, and one for 
Bashbish, going to one of the mountain boarding houses for food and 
lodging. 

At Stockbridge one should walk to Ice Glen and Laura's Rest, and take 
several of the charming rides of the neighborhood, including the one 
to"Fernside," one around Lake Mahkeenacand " the new drive " thi'ough 
Lake Averic, near Fuary's quarries, along the base of the mountain, and 
the West Stockbridge road back. The Lenox visit must be largely 
devoted to drives, including, on the way, the old county road from Stock- 
bridge to Lenox, a visit to " Highlawn Farm," if the traveler is a lover of 
horses, a ride to the top of Bald Head Mountain, one through " Cliffwood " 
park, a visit to the glass works at Lenox Furnace, and other rides over 
the principal roads of the town. It is well to go to Pittsfield ov6r 
the east road along the base of the mountain, taking in Tory Glen and 
Roaring Brook on the way, or through Richmond, ascending on the way. 
Perry's Peak. Pittsfield has some beautiful drives that would more than 
take the time that can probably be spared for them. One ride may be to 
Wahconah Falls in the edge of Windsor, near Dalton, ten miles, return- 
ing by the way of the farm of Z. Crane, Jr., in the north part of Pittsfield. 
If Sunday finds the tourist in Stockbridge, Lenox or Pittsfield, he will 
probably want to visit the Lebanon Shakers, and see their religious 
observances. Interesting drives are to Wizard's Glen, four miles off, 
Roaring Brook and Toiy's Glen, not far off on the side of Washington 
Mountain, a ride over Potter Mountain, nine miles away, to Perry's Peak, 
nine miles, and the glass works at Berkshire Village, six miles off. From 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 239 

Pittsfield the traveler will pass through Lanesboro, seeing the Balanced 
Eock in that town, and proceed to Williamstown, where he will be 
greatly interested in village perfection, and in examining the scenery 
from several favorable places. At North Adams the Hoosac Tunnel, the 
magnificent prospect from Florida Mountain, and the Natural Bridge, a 
mile northeast of the village will take a day, and from North Adams a car- 
riage road leids to the top of Greylock, the outlook from which no one 
must omit seeing. The order of this tour will vary a little according to 
the point of beginning, in what respect the map will show. If the tour- 
ist's exit is on the northwest, the order will be Lanesboro, Adams, North 
Adams and Williamstown, instead of the order mentioned, which was in- 
tended for a northeast exit. 

This tour embraces some of the leading features of the region, and 
will give the traveler some idea of what it really is. An allowance of 
the usual vacation time of two weeks for the journey will be very in- 
adequate, though it will be better than not seeing the country at all. 
Three weeks will do better, and a month should be taken. If the time 
is short, it would be better to do merely as much of a small part of the 
county as possible, and do it thoroughly. That a three-weeks' allow- 
ance is none too much for only a mere skeleton of a tour within the 
region, appears when the time is thus allotted : Salisbury, 3 days ; Great 
Barrington, 3; Mo'^nt "Washington, 2; Stockbridge, 3; Lenox, 3; Pittsfield, 
S ; Williamstown, 2 ; North Adams, 2 ; total : 21 days. To force the journey 
in two weeks this allowance may be made: Salisbury, 2; Great Barring- 
ton, 2; Mount Washington, 2; Stockbridge, 2; Lenox 2; Pittsfield, 1: 
Williamstown, 2; Noi h Adams, 1; total: 14 days. But instead of doing 
this, the tourist should better cover less territory and see no more than 
he can become thoroughly acquainted with. Tours are sometimes made 
Iiy traveling only on straight roads from either Norfolk, Canaan or Salis- 
liury, through Shefiield, Great Barrington, Stockbridge, Lenox, Pitts- 
field, Lanesboro, Williamstown and North Adams. In such a course, the 
tourist is assured, he will get nothing more than an introduction to Berk- 
Berkshire, and will fail to see ninety-nine hundredths of what will be 
spread before him if he beholds even no more than is suggested in this 
article. 

The only time that is open to many people to make a tour is in some 
part of July or August, months that are too hot for such an under- 
taking with the most comfort, and, if the summer be hot and dry a 
time when Berkshire is not at its best. In early June, when apple 
trees are in bloom, Berkshire is incomparably lovely, and then, when 



240 



THE BOOK OF BEKKSHIKE. 



the hours of daylight are long and the heat is not too great, is a good 
time for the tour. The roads, however, may not be in quite as good 
condition as later, but they will be good at their worst. Like a belle of 
fashion, Berkshire changes her garb with great frequency, and the 
tourist can see the countiy in any way he pleases, if he will pick the 
suitable time of year. But, if he cannot come in June and can come in 
the middle of September or a little later, by all means let him come at 
the latter time, when he will behold the brilliant foliage and find 
temperature most suitable for travelinff. 




BBRKSHIRB PROSH A?(I> POETRY. 



The Beauty and Majesty of Berkshire. 

Thou who woiild'st see the lovely and the wild 
Mingled in harmony on Nature's face, 
Ascend our rocky mountains. Let thy foot 
Fail not with weariness, for on their tops 
The beauty and the majesty of earth, 
Spread wide beneath, shall make thee to forget 
The steep and toilsome way. There, as thou stand'st, 
The haunts of men below thee, and around 
The mountain summits, thy expanding heart 
Shall feel a kindred with that loftier world 
To which thou art translated, and partake 
The enlargement of thy vision. Thou shalt look 
Upon the green and rolling forest tops. 
And down into the secrets of the glens. 
And streams, that with their bordering thickets strive 
To hide their windings. Thou shalt gaze at once, 
Here on white villages, and tilth, and herds, 
And swarming roads, and there on solitudes 
That only hear the torrent, and the wind. 
And eagle's shriek. 

— Bryanfs Mcmivieiit Mountain. 



Sunrise Seen from a Berkshire Hill. 

Along the pathway, tangles of white morning glories crept over hedges 
of thistles and daisies, while meadow veronica rose up dewily fresh in 
the field grasses, filling the cool morning breeze with sweetest perfume. 
Over us a few stars lingered in the soft gray heavens, and far over the 
deep dark eastern hills and beyond the blue range of the Green Mountain 
chain, the horizon was flushed with rosy gold which deepened into sal- 
mon pink as the sun came up from his bath of blue gray mountain 
mists. Then all the east grew rosy as he left the glowing heaven and 
curtained himself under falls of soft dove tinted clouds. Not many 
moments did these somber hued garments enfold him ; they quickly 
16 



242 TUE BOOK OF UEKKSUIBE. 

changed to the delicate hue of peach blossoms and the billowy edges of 
their soft gray folds, floating in a light of liquid pearl caught up a fringe 
of gold and flashed the splendors of day dawn up to the zenith. Through 
cloud rifts the sun shown over the land. The vapors floated around the 
nearer mountains, and valleys were tinged with the pinky salmon light 
of the mountain rim, the tips of the pine forests caught the glow and 
glittered like walls of emerald set in gold, the bending heads of the rye 
fields reflected the radiance and rustled in ripples of red gold light; the 
eastern heaven burned in splendor of opal and lit its signal fire on every 
mountain height, heralding to the quiet valleys the dawn of another 
day. — " Octavia Hensel." 



Berkshire in Autumn Foliage. 

The scenery which a few weeks ago stood in summer green now seemed 
enchanted. The Housatonic was the same. The skies were the same. 
The mountain forms were unchanged. But they had blossomed into 
resplendent colors from top to base. It was strange to see such huge 
mountains, that are images of firmness and majesty, now tricked oat 
with fairy pomp, as if all the sjiirits of the air had reveled there and 
hung their glowing scarfs on every leaf and bough. « * * One who 
breaks off in the summer and returns in autumn to the hills needs 
almost to come to a new acquaintance with the most familiar things. 
It is another world ; or it is the old world a-masquerading. * * * But 
these holiday hills! Have the evening clouds, suffused wnth sunset, 
dropped down and become fixed into solid forms ? Have the rain- 
bows that followed autumn storms faded ui)on the mountains and left 
their mantles there ? I stand alone upon the peaceful summit of this 
hill and turn in every direction. The east is all aglow; the blue north 
flushes all her hills with radiance; the west stands in burnished armor; 
the southern hills buckle the zone of the horizon together wi th emeralds 
and rubies, such as were never set in the fabled girdle of the gods! Of 
gazing there cannot be enough. The hunger of the eye grows by feeding. 

But in vain do the evergreens give solemn examples to the merry 
leaves which frolic with every breeze that runs sweet riot in the glowing 
shades. Gay leaves w'ill not be counseled, but will die bright and laugh- 
ing. But both together — the transfigured leaves of deciduous trees and 
the calm uuchangeableness of evergreens — how more beautiful are they 
than either alone! The solenin pine brings color to the cheek of the 
bushes, and the scarlet and golden maples rest gracefully upon the dark 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIKE. 243 

foliage of the million fingered pine. All summer long these leaves have 
wrought their tasks. Now hath come their play spell. Nature gives 
them a jubilee. It is a concert of colors for the eye. What a mighty 
charm of colors do the trees roll down the valleys, up the hillsides, and 
over the mountains! 

When the Year, having wrought and finished her solid structures, un- 
bends and consecrates the glad October month to fancy, then all hues 
that were before scattered in lurking flowers, in clouds, upon plumed 
birds, and burnished insects, are left loose like a flood and poured abroad 
in the wild magnificence of Divine bounty. The earth lifts up its head 
crowned as no monarch was ever crowned and the seasons go forth 
toward winter, chanting toward God a hymn of praise. — Henry 
Ward Beecher. 



Berkshire Stimulus to Literary Work. 

The repose and beauty of the scenery of Berkshire, its stimulating 
climate, its ease of access and its quiet, renders it a favorable residence 
for literary persons, and we suggest to them that, if they desire to write 
their novels and poems and histories in the briefest possible time, and 
with the least fatigue, they should come hither. — Rev. T. T, Munyer. 



A Berkshire Sunset from a Hill-Top. 

The Sun hung low over the Catskills, flooding with gold the lakelike 
ex]>anse of the Hudson as seen over the woodlands on the west. The 
sunset was one of those peculiar green and gold cloud effects, seldom 
seen, except at sea, but the great earth waves of the billowy mountains 
well recalled the waves of ocean, and the evening mists rising from the 
valleys of the plains, gleamed with the silver sheen of distant waters. 
Broad bands of sky, where salmon and primrose clouds floated like 
islands above the blue mirage of mountain and gold of river, lay along 
the western heaven; but, far above, the deepening blue light of evening 
spread up to the zenith, bearing on its azure shield the silver crescent 
of the moon. Then suddenly an orange hue filled all the sky, and rose 
in intensity of splendor to scarlet and gold; the mountains became gray 
and steel color beneath the great crimson ball of the sun, slowly 
sinking to the depths of the mountain billows. Down, down, down, till 
just a rim of light trembled on the crest of the mountains, tiien fell into 
a bath of crimson and glory. — " Octavia Hensel.'' 



aw THE BOOK OF BERKSHIKE. 

The X-vtukk of Cor>TKT Esjotmext. 
The fullest enjormeat of the oouutry does not £»rise frv>m stray excite- 
ments actins: in stmight lines; not from august mountains, wide 
panoram:»s. awful goi-jres. nor from anything that runs in upon you with 
strong stimuhitious. All these things have their place; but they are 
occasional. They are the suVbase and come in as the mighty undertone 
upon which soft and various melodies float. A thousand daily little 
things make their offering of pleasure to those who know how to be 
pleased. — Henri/ Wani Beecher. 



MOXUMEXT MorxTAix. 

There is a precipice 
That seems a fragment of some mighty wall. 
Built by the hand that fashioned the old world. 
To separate its nations, and thrown down 
\Yhen the tlood drowned them. To the north, a path 
Conducts you up the narrow battlement. 
Steep is the western side, shagg:?- aiid wild 
With mossy ti-ees and pinnacles of dint. 
And many a hanging crag. But, to the east. 
Sheer to the vale go down the bare old cliffs, — 
Huge pillars, that in middle heaven upbear 
Their weather-beaten capitals, here dark 
With moss the growth of centuries, and there 
Of chalky whiteness where the thunderbolt 
Has splintered them. It is a fearful thing 
To stand upon the beetling verge, and see 
Where storm and lightning, from that huge gray vi-ail, 
Ha\-e tumbled down \-ast blocks, and at the base 
Dashed them in fragments, and to lay thine ear 
Over the dizzj depth, and hear the sound 
Of winds, that struggle with the woods below. 
Come up like ocean murmurs. But the scene 
Is loveiy round ; a beautiful ri>-er then? 
Wanders amid the fresh and fertile meads. 
The paradise he made unto himself. 
Mining the soil for ages. On each side 
The fields swell upward to the hills ; beyond. 
Above the hills, in the blue distance, rise 
The mountain columns with which earth props heaven. 



TIIK 1500K OF BEBKSIIIUK. 245 



Country and City Life Contrasted. 

It is no advantapfo to live in a <:jroat city, whoro poverty de^rados and 
failure briui^s despair. The lields are lovelier than paved streets, and 
the great forests than walls of brick. Oaks and elms are more poetic 
than steeples and chimneys. In the country is the idea of homo. 
There you seethe risinj^ and settino- sun; you become acquainted with 
the stars and clouds. The constellations are your friends. Your hear 
the rain on tlieri)c)f and listen to the rhythmic si^luni; of the winds. You 
are thrilled by the resurrection called Sprinj;, touched and saddened 
by Autumn, the grace and poetry of death. Every field is a ])icturo, 
alandscai)e; every landscape a i)oem; every flower a tender thought; 
and every forest a fairy-land. In the country you preserve yi)ur identity 
your personality. There you are an aggregation of atoms, but in the 
city you are only an atom oi an aggregation. — Robert G. ImjcrsoU. 



Green River. 



Yet pure its waters — its shallows are bright * 

With colored pebbles and sparkles of light, 

And clear the depths where its eddies play. 

And dimples deepen and whirl away, 

And the plane-tree's speckled arms o'ershoot 

The swifter current that mines its root, 

Through whose shifting leaves, as you walk the hill, 

The quivering glimmer of sun and rill 

With a sudden Hash on the eye is thrown. 

Like the ray that streams from the diamond stone. 

Oh, loveliest there the spring days come, 

With blossoms and birds and wild bees' hum ; 

The flowers of summer are fairest there. 

And freshest the breath of the summer air ; 

And sweetest the golden autumn day 

In silence and sunshine glides away. 

— William Ciilleii Bryant. 



BERKSHIRH'S I^BXX DOOR PCHIGHBORS. 

Some of the Nearest Ones. 



The distinctive Berkshire region extends southward into the northern 

part of Litchheld county, Ct., a few miles. In the northwest corner the 

town of Salisbury has marvelous beauties that do not pale under any 

comparison that can be made with them. The town is remarkable 

in ha\ing every variety of scenery within its limits, from the scenes 

of unbroken wildness to others that touch the last extremity of exquisite 

beauty. It is safe to say that there is no other town in the country that 

embraces greater varieties of natural scenery, and all of the very highest 

order of merit ; and that there are none outside of this region that equal 

it. Salisbury is a country paradise, fit for the very gods themselves to 

revel in. 

Bakak Matiff and Pkospect Mountains. 

Salisbury is singularly rich in mountain outlooks, from places, too, 
that are easily accessible and that are but short distances from the 
central villages of Salisbury and Lakeville. The Taconic Mountains here 
come to a bold, broad, abrupt end at the very margin of these villages, 
and afford the most indescribable ^^ews of Berkshire and Litchfield 
counties, and the Harlem and Hudson river valleys. The surface of the 
town away from the Taconics is thoroughly broken up by hills, and 
some mountains all conducive to making perfect landscapes. The 
narrow valley in which the picturesque village of Salisbury lies, is 
bounded on the east by the TVatawanchu Mountain, a short range that 
rises distinct from the Taconics. The north end of this mountain, 
Barak Matiff. is seen from points far north in Berkshire, and conse- 
quently commands \-iews of surprising beauty. People drive a mile 
to the foot and walk half a mile to the top. Mount Prospect is the 
highest elevation of this mountain and is often visited for its extensive 
and varied outlook. It is two miles east of the village of Salisbury, and 
one may ride to the summit, the last half mile over a private road. It is 
a favorite resort of people on the Housatonic valley side. Numerous 
and memorable walks can be made to places in the Watawanchu 
Mountain. 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 247 

IXDiAN Cave and the Pool. 

One half mile from the villacre across the fields is the Indian Cave, a 
wild place in the rocks; picnics are held in a neighboring grove, by 
which runs a mountain brook. A quarter of a mile beyond the cave is 
the Pool, a medicinal spring, that has much local celebrity for curing 
cutaneous diseases. The walk up the ravine to reach the spring is 
a most delightful one. 

Babes' Hill. 

Continuing with the elevation of the town, we find several on the east 
and northeast of Lake Washiuing, the upper one of the Twin Lakes. 
Babes' Hill is a little smooth conical mount overlooking the lake, easy of 
ascent, and surprising the climber with a much finer view than he will 
expect. Indeed, the view is nothing short of a masterpiece, the lake sur- 
rounded by darkly wooded shores, with its island, its glassy or rolling 
waters, the hills, forests, and cleared fields on all sides, and with the 
dark background of the Taconics to the westward. It is a transforma- 
tion scene in fairy land, and will put a spell on the observer that he will 
be loth to break, though it hold him for hours. 

Tom's Mount and Ashley Mountain. 

Shortly back of Babes' Hill, and rising much higher, is Tom's Mount, 
commanding this same view from a changing outlook, and including a 
much more extensive field on the south, and particularly on the north 
and northwest in Berkshire. East of this mount is Ashley Mountain 
somewhat higher, largely wooded, but affording from many an outlook 
on all sides of its circular summit a sweep of views that has few equals 
for variety in all the Berkshire region. Reference is made to this 
mountain in the article on Sheffield in which town it is partly situated. 
A drive to these mounts and a tramp over them would make a rich half 
day's experience. 

Indian Relics. 

On the Wetaug road running along the earthen base of Ashley Mount- 
ain, parallel with the Housatonic River, is the old Council Elm of the 
Indians, a quarter of a mile south of Robert Little's house. The old 
Wetaug burial ground of the Indians is situated on the bank of the 
river near this place. The wearing of the river at one time washed out 
many skeletons that crumbled to dust upon exposure and brought 
to light many Indian relics in the way of weapons, implements, and so on, 
a large number of which Mr. Little has in his possession. 



248 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 



Indian Mountain and Lake. 
In the opposite corner of the town, the southwest is Indian Mountain, 
where the Moravians had a mission in early times. The prospect west- 
ward is very fine. On the west side of this mountain in New York state 
is Indian Pond, a beautiful sheet of water that is the resort of many 
people from Sharon, from neighboring towns in New York and, often 
from people from Salisbui-y. 

Bear Mountain. 
The elevations of the Taconics in this town afford numerous outlets of 
inexpressible delight. The highest one, Bear Mountain, is the loftiest 
mountain in Connecticut, being 2,350 feet above the ocean. On the top of 
this mountain. Bobbins Battell of Norfolk has erected a stone monument 
20 feet high, on which he has planted an iron post extending 15 feet 
higher, and on top of the post is a gilded globe 2i feet in diameter, 
visible for a long distance, so that the top of the globe is about 2,390 
feet above the ocean. People go to this mountain via Mount Kiga 
taking a foot path, the last half mile. 

Bald Peak. 
Bald Peak, three miles from Salisbury village, is easily reached by 
driving to within 100 rods of the top and walking the remainder of the 
distance. 

Lion's Head. 

Lion's Head is a breast on the eastern side of the Taconics, two miles 
from Salisbury village, the last half mile being a pathway. It is fre- 
quently resorted to, for the view is extensive in Salisbury and beyond 
and in Berkshire, and one of extreme beauty. A precipice, on one side 
of the summit gives the top the appearance of a lion's head, it is fancied. 

The Cobble. 
On the border of the north end of the village of Salisbury is a rocky 
knell about 100 feet high called the Cobble, from the top of which 
the outlook is fine. It is of green formation, rough, and somewhat 
wooded. The walk requires but ten minutes. 

Heavenly Lakes. 

But the strongest feature of Salisbury is its lakes. It may be said 

without reservation that in all the Berkshire region there is not another 

town so rich in lake scenery as this one. If the tourist would touch 

the highest exaltation of his aesthetic emotions let him come to this 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 2-i9 

town and behold the lakes and their environments, and even if he be in 
search of lakes that shall convince him of their pre-eminent beauty, 
he vrill abide in Salisbury, satisfied that further search would be useless. 
They are worth a volume of description and enthusiasm, but the gap be- 
between the woods and their object would be too great. These akes 
are simply heavenly. 

Twin Lakes. 

The beautiful and the picturesque find their highest forms in the 
scenes in which the Twin Lakes have a place. A wordy description 
would fall so far short of doing them half justice that the attemi)t is too 
hopeless to be made. Washining the eastern lake and decidedly the most 
lovely, is nearly round, and about a mile and a half across, A long 
wooded island of 40 acres breaks its surface. A part of the east shore 
is like an ocean beach, with its sand and pebbles, and the other shores 
embrace every variety of description. The water is a clear green, fed 
almost exclusively by springs in the bed of the lake, which is very deep. 
Woodland embraces the lake on nearly every side, the hills rise around 
the bold Tom's Mount almost overhanging the water, and further 
off stand the mountains, with The Dome and the chain of the Taconics 
stretching along the whole western horizon. This lake is a famous 
camping resort and in August as many as 250 to 300 peojile may some- 
times be found camping on the shore. The soft music that floats across 
the water upon the air of evening, the glitter of the lights, the illumin- 
ating moon disclosing the faint outlines of natural objects and the 
rippling of her light from the surface of the water make a night scene 
that the fancies of the fairies never conceived. Accommodations in the 
way of boats, horse feeding, and so on, may be had on the east side, 
which is the best place to go for a day's visit; but various accommoda- 
tions may be had on the west side. 

The west lake, Washinee, is connected with the other by a narrow 
stream about 50 yards long, flowing water enough to float a boat. 
The lake is long and curving and ends in a romantic outlet at Cliaxiin- 
ville. Its shores are not resorted to for camjjing, very much, and it is 
inferior in appearance to the other lake, still it is beautiful beyond the 
common lot of lakes and affords delightful rowing. The names of these 
lakes are Indian; Washining, it is said, meaning "Laughing Water," 
according to the standard phrase, and Washinee "Smiling Water," to 
express inferior charms. Henry Ward Beecher wrote of them : " For 
more beautiful sheets of water and more beautiful sites upon which to 
look at them, one may search for without finding." 



250 THE BOOK OF BEKKSIIIRE. 

The Connecticut Western Railroad runs over portions of both lakes 
and has a station between them. It has been noticed that boulders 
in Lake Washinee and in North Pond on Mount Kiga have changed their 
resting places and approached the shore. The explanation is that of 
water expansion when frozen, the ice carrying the imbedded boulders 
with it. The formation of the famous walled lake of Iowa is thus 
accounted for. In the woods a short distance from Washinee is a natural 
cave of considerable extent. It has been explored, but the passage 
ways are so small that there is no pleasure in crawling through them. 

Lake Wononscopomuc. 
A Lake of great beauty, also, is that at Lakeville, Lake Wononscopo- 
muc ( get the rhythm of the syllables and it is easy enough. ) It is a large 
round lake, surrounded by groves and washing its northern shore close 
to the houses of Lakeville and at the base of the south end of the 
Tacouics. The waters are of a clear blue, and have no inlet so that the 
lake is spring fed. It is a great resort in summer for the town's people 
and visitors who are spending the seasoji there. All kinds of aquatic 
sport are feasible and are indulged in to a great extent. The beaches 
are fine and some camping is done on its shores. On the east side of the 
lake was an old Indian Council ground. 

Lake Wononpakok. 
A quarter of a mile south of Wononscopomuc is Wononpakok, a pic- 
turesque lake embraced by woodland and field, with a margin that is 
bold and beachlike, in places. People ride to the south end, two or 
three miles from Lakeville, when they want to go out upon the lake. 

North Pond and Round Pond. 
Such is the wide variety of Salisbury's scenery that we may now pass 
from lakes embowered in beauty to those that lie in an unbi'oken wilder- 
ness. On Mount Riga are two lakes only four and four and a half miles 
from Salisbury village. The best one. North Pond, is a large lake in 
whose environment, as one stands on the margin, is no sign of civiliza- 
tion. The forest crowds down upon the water on all sides, the shores 
are very irregular and rocky, cliffs rise about the lake and project into 
it. There is a rough and rocky, wooded island of a few acres in one 
end and in the other end are clusters of small islands. This lake is 
about 1,.500 feet above Salisbury, the village itself being 075 feet above 
the ocean. The place is the resort of camping parties, who have here, a 
step from civilization, a lake that seems to be in the Adirondack wilder- 



TIIK BOOK OF BEKKSHIRE. 251 

ness. Half a mile south of North Pond is Hound Pond, a wild, rocky, 
picturesque lake with the old village of Mount Eiga at its lower side. 

Sage's Kavine. 

Salisbury is the home of wild scenery — of the cataract, the water-fall, 

ravines, glens, preciisices, forest covered and rock strewn hills and 

mountains. Sage's Piavine, more particularly mentioned in the article 

on Sheffield, lies partly in this town, four miles north of Salisbury village. 

RossiTER Hollow Cascades. 
Rossiter Hollow and Cascades, two miles from the village on the road 
up to Mountain Riga, are noted for wildness. Here in a ravine two miles 
long the water plunges down numerous cascades among boulders and 
amid the most picturesque scenes. 

Selleck Hill. 
From Selleck Hill, a mile and a half from the villages of Salisbui-y and 
Lakeville, at the "Broadview Farm" of Judge D. J. Warner of Salisbury 
is an outlook that challenges the most formidable comparison. The 
most beautiful and extensive views are had without leaving the carriage, 
and the road is most of it delightfully shady. 

Canaan Falls. 
As the Housatonic River, which is the eastern boundary, passes the 
the town, it descends at the famous Canaan Falls a distance of 70 feet. 
These are the greatest falls of this river from its source to the sound. 
This cataract, in volume of water, in height, in form, and in general ef- 
fect, is a very notable one. It is seen, but not well, from the car window 
as one rides along the Housatonic Road. In the spring freshet of 1S;37 
a man was swept over these falls and lived to tell of it. Salisbury has 
many other natural features that would be notable anywhere else, but 
here they are not particularly thought of, amid the prolific work of 
nature in which they are surpassed. 

Salisbury Village. 
Salisbury has five post-offices and eight or nine villages. Salisbury 
village lies snug and quiet at the base of the Taconics and is a delightful 
spot in which to spend the summer and autumn. It is on the Hartford 
& Connecticut Western Raili'oad, three and a half hours from New York. 
The Maple Shade Hotel accommodates about 30 people, and "Lawn Cot- 
tage" near the center, about the same number. Boarders can find good 
entertainment at Mr. J. G. Landon's, and at a few other houses, and 



252 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 




Canaan Falls. 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 253 



there are two or three houses in the village that could be hired furnished 
for the summer. 

In the rear of " Lawn Cottage " is a handsome grove of primitive 
chestnut, oak and hemlock of some 28 acres, cut by a winding ravine 
through which is a path leading to Grove Spring. In this grove is a re- 
markable boulder that is often visited. Resting on the brow of a hill 
surrounded by large primitive timber of various kinds is a huge rock of 
a formation similar to the mountain ledges, about 15 feet high and 20 
feet square. It rests on a smooth limestone ledge, and at an apparent 
angle of 45 degrees, and it looks as if a child could send it crashing down 
the slope by merely pushing it. It is commonly known as Rostrum 
Rock Grove; Rock Spring and ravine are within 5 minutes' walk of both 
hotels and are greatly resorted to by native and visitors. The grove is 
not enclosed. Just beyond is Clark's Knoll, 20 minutes' walk, an abrupt 
rise of 150 feet above the village from which a wide view of mountain 
ranges and lakes is obtained. 



Lakeville is a busy village on the Connecticut Western Railroad on the 
slope of the Taconics where they end on the south. Its location is a 
truly delightful one, commanding a prospect of singular beauty and 
picturesqueness. At the foot of the slope is Lake Wononscopomuc, with 
all its offerings of enjoyment. The Wononsco House has its full quota of 
guests every summer and autumn, and entertains them off the top shelf 
under the management of Harvey Winegar. There are several boarding 
houses in and near the village. Words cannot express the beauties 
of the southerly view from this village, and without attempting to do so, 
we must be content to advise a visit to the place. A gentleman who has 
travelled far and wide, who has a quick appreqiation of natural beauties, 
and whose name is known all over the United States and in Europe, 
came to this village with his wife to spend the honeymoon, selecting it as 
the most delightful place he knew of. 

A fine drive or walk near Lakeville is around tlie lake, a distance of oi 
miles. A near resort is the hill on the north side of the road, a mile and 
a half west of the village center. The view from this hill is so unusually 
fine that Henry Ward Beecher, early in the '50's, wanted to buy 
it for a site for a house in which he expected to live in the summer, but 
he was prevented from doing so. Rose Hill, on the road to Lime Rock, 
affords a fine view, and a ride or a walk across Rose Hill, down Wells 



254 THE BOOK OF BEKKSHIKE. 

Hill, and areturn bythe old turnpike, is delightful, the distance beingthrevT 
miles. A very enjoyable walk is north to Selleck Hill, two miles out; and 
another is to Lincoln City and return via Burton Brook path, the whole 
trip being one mile. 

Other Villages. 

Chapinville is a small village in the north part of the town, on the Con- 
necticut Western Railroad, where boarders are taken. At Lime Eock, near 
the Housatonic Railroad, there is a post-office village and one at Ore Hill, 
near the New York state line on the Connecticut Western Road. On Town 
Hill, a little southeast of Lake Wononscoijomuc was the first village in the 
town, and still seen there is the old stone Montgomery house, built by the 
Livingstons, over 100 years ago, when they ranged into Massachusetts 
and Connecticut. 

The Drives. 

From the natural composition of the town, one may gain a faint idea 
of the transcendant delights of the drives. A list of the leading ones 
will be found in the proper place in this volume, but a hundred more 
could be mentioned. Henry Ward Beecher writes of the town that '" the 
rides in all this neighborhood are very fine, and a week at Salisbury will 
be apt to tempt you back, again and again." The roads in the town 
cover about 100 miles in total length and are kept in the best state of re- 
pair. The visitor will be surj^rised to find how much there is to be seen 
in town upon short drives or walks, a feature peculiar to Salisbury. 
One-half mile from the village of Salisbury one finds himself in the 
extremest wildness, and at short distances he becomes elevated high 
above the country below, or stands upon the shores of the loveliest lakes. 
In the table of drives the distances mentioned are from Salisbury village. 
Lakeville is but a mile and a half away and the distances for that village 
will be shortened or lengthened, a mile and a half or three miles, as 
the case may demand. 

Country Homes. 

Several city people have come to Salisbury to establish country homes. 
Jonathan and Nathaniel C. Scoville, both prominent men in Buffalo, X. 
Y., and both natives of this town, acquired a large estate in Chapinville 
in 1883, where they have large new buildings with finely laid out grounds. 
Isaac E. Garvey of New York has bought a place on the hill noi'th of 
Lake Washining; Edward Rogers of Philadelijhia has bought the island 
in that lake, and William C. Witter of New York has bought a place 
in Lakeville, where he spends the summer. There are numerous sites for 
country homes that can be bought in the town. 



the p.ook of berksxiike. 255 

The Iron Industry. 
Places of ^reat interest in the town are the iron mines. The Davis Ore 
Bed is half way between the villages of Salisbury and Lakeville, and 
a short walk from cither one. This ore bed supi)lied ore to the flrst iron 
furnace erected in Connecticut, built at Lime Kock about 1734. The 
other iron mine in town is the Old Oi'c Hill Bed in the west part of 
the town, two miles from Lakeville, which was worked in the last 
century. Numerous other iron ore beds have been opened in town at 
various times, but are not now worked. The Lime Kock iron furnace 
mentioned is still in operation in new buildings owned by the Barnum- 
llichardson Company, of which ex-Senator Barnum is the head. It is the 
only survivor of several other iron furnaces that have been in the town. 
Much of the iron ore mined goes to ten or a dozen furnaces in the Housa- 
tonic valley. The Salisbury iron is classed with the best in the country 
and has long been of great use to the nation. In the Revolution the 
Lime Hock furnace was taken possession of by the Colonies, and 
large quantities of cannon, shot and shells were made from the town's 
ore. John Jay and Gouverneur Morris were often here superintending 
the work. The "Constellation" and the "Constitution," — "Old Iron 
Sides," — were both armed with cannon made here. In the Rebellion 
Oliver Ames's works at Canaan Falls made large numbers of cannon for 
the government. The old furnace at Mount Riga did famous work in its 
day. The manufacture of Bessemer steel was introduced into this coun- 
try by a Salisbury engineer, Alexander L. IloUey, who learned the 
process in England. 

Many Distinguished Natives. 
An astonishingly large number of men, most of them natives of this 
town and all of them living here for a considerable time, have be- 
come distinguished. The state of Vermont owes some of its best blood 
to Salisbury ; among the rest, the Evarts family. Ethan Allen, the hero 
of Ticonderoga, and some of the famous " Green Mountain Boys," also 
migrated from this town, where Ethan was an owner of the first blast 
furnace in town, and in the state, erected in 1702. The Western Reserve, 
or "New Connecticut," in Ohio, got many of its best immigrants 
from Salisbury. Caleb Bingham, a prominent man in Boston, and com- 
piler of that old school reader, the National Preceptor, was born in this 
town. Of the men who went to Vermont, Thomas Chittenden was gov- 
ernor, with the exception of one year, from 1778 to 1797; Ira Allen 
was state treasurer for many years, and Jonas Galusha was governor. 



256 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 

Martin Chittenden, governor of that state was a native of this town; 
Nathaniel Chii^man, chief justice of the A^ermont supreme court, was a 
native; chief justice Ambrose Spencer of New York, was another, 
and his son, John C. Spencer, was a brilhant lawyer and Secretary of 
War under President Tyler. Still another native was General Peter 
B. Porter, who was Secretary of War under part of John Quincy Adams's 
adminstration. Among other natives, Josiah S. Johnson was United 
States Senator from Louisiana; Chester Averill was a professor in Union 
College, Alexander H. Holley, now living in town, was governor of 
Connecticut; Samuel Church was chief justice of the Connecticut 
supreme court; Theron B. Strong, was a judge of the supreme court and 
of the court of appeals in New York, and Orville L. Holley, author, 
editor and lawyer, was for several years Surveyor-General of New York. 
John M. Holley was a talented member of Congress from western 
New York; John H. Hubbard was attorney-general of Connecticut 
for several years; Koger Averill was lieutenant-governor for several 
years, Judson S. Landon is now a judge of the New York supreme court; 
the Rev. Peter M. Bartlett is or was president of Marysville College 
in Tennessee, and the Rev. Alexander Bartlett was or is professor in the 
same. Albert E. Church became professor of mathematics in the 
West Point Military Academy, and published several mathematical 
works ; the Rev. Isaac Bird was for years a missionary in Palestine, at 
Beirut, and at Mount Lebanon ; Bishop E. S. Janes received a large por- 
tion of his education in town; William H. Barnum, now living at Lime 
Rock has represented the state in the United States Senate, was a mem- 
ber of the House nine years, was chairman of the democratic national 
committee in 1876, that conducted for Samuel J. Tilden the most notable 
and able political campaign in the history of the country. The list 
is becoming tiresome, but is not exhausted. Among natives of the town 
there have been three United State Senators, eight Congressmen, three 
eminent chief justices, several judges of less note, four governors, two 
lieutenant-governors, two presidents and several professors in colleges, 
several military and naval officers, several lawyers and clergymen of 
high repute, and others whose offices wei-e high, some of whom have been 
mentioned by name. This is a remarkable list for a town that never 
had 4,000 people. 

Salisbury lies tucked away in a corner of the state where city people 
will tind a most delightful resting place, with country enjoyments. 
It seems here as if the natural attractions of a whole state had been 
crowded into one town, so abundant are they on every hand and in every 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 257 



part of the town. The primitive wilduess is unmarred, the beauty is ex- 
quisite, the picturesque is that of perfection, and all is where it can be 
readily enjoyed. Words, at the best, cannot do justice to Salisbury, and 
the limits of this article have allowed only a brief mention, and then only 
of the main points of interest. The visitor will discover a thousand more. 



Norfolk is one of the towns of the Berkshire region in the bordering 
land of Connecticut. It conforms to the rule of dissimilarity that pre- 
vails among all these towns, a feature that is found more prominent 
among them than among the towns of any other region in the country. 
This is a hill town that has attained great poijvilarity among the people 
who go into the country in the summer and autumn seasons and has 
made a good beginning as a location for country homes for city people. 
The wild and picturesque nature of the town, its high degree of health- 
fulness, its many points of lookout, its lakes and drives and its easy ac- 
cessibility make it a favorite with a great many people of high social 
standing, who come here for congenial association with their fellows 
and an appreciative contact with nature's harmonies. The wild, rugged 
surface of the town draws forth much admiration from visitors, who 
find here many striking, jiicturesque touches of creative art, and rejoice 
in the exhilarating air to find country living so pleasurable. 

The elevation of the habitable part of this town ranges from 1,200 to 
1,400 feet above the ocean and the elevation of Norfolk village is 1,250 
feet at the church.. The highest point reached by a railroad in the state 
is here where the highest railway elevation is 1,236 feet. Here, amid the 
hills and mountains and the dry, bracing and somewhat rarified air, and 
the pure water, the germs of malaria are deprived of their nourishment, 
and, if they are ever brought this way, they at once die a speedy death. 
The summer temperature is low and the visitor finds much comfort ia 
living here. He is fed from excellent daii-ies that are the i^ride of the re- 
gion, where, as is well known to those who have given the matter atten- 
tion, the grass of the hills makes better butter and milk than valley grass. 

Public Spirit. 
Norfolk village has an appearance that shows no ill keeping and ne- 
glect, but on the other hand, lives in an air of watchful regard for its 
material aspect and for the welfare of its people. There are several 
people in the village who have long taken special pains to see to this. 
17 



258 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIKE. 

Judge Eobbins Battell, a native of the town, whose grandfather, the 
Rev. Ammi E. Robbins, was the first settled clergyman in the town, be- 
ginning in 1761, has always taken a prominent part in village and town 
improvement, and, though doing business in New York, has ever been 
proud to maintain a home here for i^ermanent residence. Judge Battell 
maintains a line home where he has a collection of paintings, principally 
landscapes, by American painters, that hardly has a rival anywhere. 
All the best i^ainters are represented and by their best work. The pic- 
ture room is kindly opened to the public at certain regular times each 
week. Several years ago Judge Battell put in the Congregational church 
a chime of four bells which are connected with the clock and are made 
to strike the ({uarter hour. In many improvements, Judge Battell has 
had the active and ardent co-operation of his sister. Miss. Anna B. Bat- 
tell, and of Joseph B. Eldridge and his family, who have a delightful 
home in the village. A green or open park has been laid out where the 
streets make a large triangle, and set with large evergreens, beneath the 
shade of which visitors take refuge from the noonday sun. Here, dur- 
ing a week in the summer when the most people are in town, through 
the procurement of the Battells, a band of high class musicians from 
New York gives a public concert every morning and evening, the selec- 
tions being such classical music as Ihat of Beethoven and Schubert, and 
some of the musicians being from Thomas's and Damrasch's orchestra. 
The constantly active public spirit of the Battells and the Eldridges ap- 
pears in tbe beautiful cemetery, in the fine roads, in a free public read- 
ing room where there is a good supply of the newspapers and the period- 
ical literature of the day, in the village Hall As.sociation which built a 
handsome structure in 1885, containing a hall for meetings and places 
for stores, and in numerous other ways. 

Walks near the Village. 
The national attractions of the town are so many that it is only by 
traversing almost every acre that they can all be found. Numerous de- 
lightful walks and short drives may be had near the village. At no place 
within four miles of the village does the railroad cross a road at grade. 
Several charming drives will be found mentioned in the table of drives. 
Coming toward the village on the road from near Bigelow Pond, two 
miles east, the view is fine toward the west; and two miles north of the 
village the views are extremely attractive from all the roads in the 
vicinity of Haystack Mountain on its north and northeast. A pleasant 
walk is to Buttermilk Falls, on the western edge of the village, where the 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 259 

BlackbeiTjf River makes a long plunge down the rocks. The ledge, near 
Judge Battel!' s house is much resorted to for the decidedly picturesque 
view down the valley toward Canaan, particularly about sunset, when 
the beauties of the scene are much enhanced. A water tower, built 
here has a private observatory on top. The walk to the cemetery one- 
half mile north of the village is a fine one, and, indeed, good walks may 
be had in all quarters. 

Button Hill. 

There are three easily accessible summits in the town, commanding 
wide, varied and charming views. The nearest is Button Hill, whose top 
is a mile from the village on the south. The top is clear of woods and 
an elevated platform has been built, from which the outlook, south, 
west and northwest is of a most impressive character. The elevation is 
1,632 feet. 

Haystack Mountain, 

The walk is easy to the summit of this conical-shaped mountain, a 
mile and a half north of the village, whose elevation is 1,680 feet. The 
magnificent outlook is the best in town, embracing, as it does, all the 
hills toward the Connecticut River, extending even 15 miles east of Hart- 
ford to the Bolton range ; including the Talcott Mountain Tower, Ivy 
Mountain, and Mohawk Mountain toward the south, several valleys in- 
cluding the picturesque Blackberry River valley leading to Canaan, and a 
long sweep of the Housatonic valley from Great Barrington to Kent, 
about 40 miles ; the western horizon is the Taconic range, with glimpses 
beyond, and Bear Mountain in Salisbury, the highest land in Connecticut, 
stands up prominently; on the north the view extends through nearly 
all Berkshire, the northernmost i^oint being the top of Greylock. A cir- 
cular tower, 30 feet high and supported by stone arches, has been built 
by Judge Battell to get an outlook above the woods that cover the top 
of the mountain. A new road leading to this tower has been made, so 
that one may drive to the summit, if he does not care to walk. This 
place is a favorite with all visitors. 

Bald Mountain. 
Elevated 1,750 feet, Bald Mountain, in the northwest part of the town, 
four miles from the village, is the highest mountain in town. The view 
is extensive and very fine. People drive to within less than half a mile 
of the top and walk the remainder of the way over a path. 

Other Outlooks. 
Moses Hill on the Goshen road, two miles out f lom the village affords 



260 THE BOOK OF BEKKSIIIKE. 

a fine view. It is but ten minutes' walk from the road. Stillman Hill, 
two miles east of the village, with a five minutes' walk, exposes excellent 
views toward the east. 

Canaan Mountain. 

The favorite out-of-town drive is that to Canaan Mountain, about six 
miles distant. Here one comes suddenly to the brink of the steep 
mountain and so striking is the effect that it seems as if half the world 
were spread out below. More particular reference to this mountain will 
be found in the article on Canaan. 

The Lakes. 

Norfolk has several charming mountain lakes of very clear water that 
form part of picturesque landscapes and afford places for aquatic sports. 
Doolittle Pond, four miles northeast of the village, is the largest lake in 
town, being about a mile long. The water is surrounded by woods and 
wilderness, with cliffs rising on the west. A little north of this is Bene- 
dict Pond, also with a wild environment. 

Tobey Pond, a mile and a half southwest of the village, is the resort of 
camping and boating parties. The neighboring hills and the fine woods 
around make the lake a choice object to the visitor. 

The Canaan Mountain Pond is four miles from Norfolk village and is 
300 feet higher. Boats may be got here and much enjoyment be had. 

The Reservoir is an artificial lake a mile long three miles north 
from the village. The woods in the vicinity are magnificent, and the 
drive around the lake is most delightful. 

Near the state line, five miles toward the north, are Campbell's Falls, 
a place much resorted to. For more particular reference see the 
New Marlboro article. 

The Summer Visitors. 

The accommodations for summer and autumn guests in Norfolk 
village and vicinity are sufficient for 500 to 600, which is the number that 
is commonly found here at one time at the favorite turn of the season. 
Boarders are taken at about 20 houses and at the village hotel — the 
StevensHouse — where about seventy-five find good entertainment at once. 
The influence of the residents and the constitution of the place have 
brought in a fine class of guests. A few of the people who have been in 
the habit of coming here are Chief Justice John Sedgwick and William 
Dowd, both of New York ; Senator Joseph R. Hawley , the Rev. Dr. IS athan- 
iel Burton, the Rev. Dr. Gage, Judge Chamberlain, Mrs. Isabella Beecher 
Hooker, the Rev. Dr. Horace Bushnell, — when he was living, — and 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 261 



John Cole, all of Hartford; Prof. Gibbs and Prof. Thomas A. Thatcher's 
family, both Yale professors. In distance Norfolk is but 35 miles from 
Hartford, and in time but one hour and three-quarters by the Hartford & 
Connecticut Western Eailroad, so that, particularly for people in the Con- 
necticut Hiver valley, in this state, the town is a favorite and very acces- 
sible resort. 

Country Homes. 

A movement among city people toward establishing country homes here 
began some time ago. Frederick Shepherd of Brooklyn, a native of this 
town, has taken his father's old place in the village to which he comes 
every summer. The place that Judge Sedgwick used to own, two miles 
north of the village, was sold to Captain Isaac Mallory of New Haven, who 
now lives here permanently. The family of Captain John Dewell, 
a deceased native, comes from New Haven every summer to occupy their 
country home in West Norfolk, two miles from Norfolk village. Several 
years ago Miss Hill of Hartford built a house on the edge of the village, 
which she sold to Robert Geer of Brooklyn, a native of the town, 
who comes here every summer and at other times during the year, 
the house being occupied by his parents. There are many fine locations 
for country homes in the village and town, yet unoccupied. 

The Robbins school, established here in 18S4, affords excellent means 
of education to the children of those peojile who make the town their 
residence. The principal, the Rev. J. W. Beach, with assistants, fits 
pupils for college and makes a good home for boarding pupils. No 
boarders are taken but boys, although girls are among the day ijupils. There 
is a handsome, well appointed school house. 

The winter attractions of Norfolk are marvelously beautiful, as one 
may judge from what he can see from a car window, some days, in rid- 
ing over the Connecticut Western Railroad. When there is rain in the 
lows laud, there is sleet or an ice storm in this town and the appearance 
of the rain or ice as it freezes on the trees is a decidedly striking sight. 
The long slender, elastic white birches may be seen bending their tops 
to earth under the heavy weight of glittering ice, the trees of the forests 
are all coated with crystal and myriads of diamonds sparkle on the 
evergreen boughs. If the sleet turns into a damp snow that freezes as 
it falls, the evergreens present the api)earance of frosted silver in the ex- 
posed places, making contrasts of white and green in graceful curvatures 
that are exceedingly beautiful. Norfolk, all in all, is a most engaging 
town in its natural and social features and has become one of the 
principal mountain resorts in Connecticut. 



262 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 



CAIKJAAN, CONN. 

THE town of North Canaan, Conn., is generally called Canaan, which 
is the name of its post-office and principal village. Though the area 
of the town is rather small, it embi-aces that same variety of scenery that 
characterizes the whole Berkshire region. The leading features only 
can be mentioned, but it should be noted that woven among them are 
many things that the visitor will find of interest. Summer guests are 
taken at the hotel in this village, the Warner House and at several 
private houses in the village, in East Canaan, Canaan Valley, and the 
neighboring country. Canaan village lies in the beautiful valley of the 
Housatonic River at a place where the valley is contracting to a narrow 
width. Mountains and hills surround it, some of them being quite near. 
East Canaan 2^ miles from Canaan, is a small village in a line valley, 
through which flows the Blackberry River after coming down from the 
elevated town of Norfolk. Extending from this valley to the northward 
is the Canaan valley, in which is a small village of the same name, a 
short distance from Canaan and East Canaan. The Hartford & Con- 
necticut Western Railroad runs east and west through Canaan and East 
Canaan, and the Housatonic Road crosses that one at Canaan. 

Canaan Mountain. 
There is a mountain outlook near Canaan village that rivals anything 
of the kind that cm be found in Berkshire from common heights. This 
is Canaan Movmtain, whose Indian name, less commonly known, is 
Wangum Mountain. Its point or angle where visitors go is a mile and a 
half southeast of Canaan by road, and a jjath of 50 rods, or one mile in a 
walk across the fields. People drive from East Canaan to the very top. 
This mountain is conspicuous in all south views from the south half of 
Berkshire and from Greylock, and hence it commands a marvelously ex- 
tensive and beautiful sweep of prospect, embracing all this and the 
memorable town of Salisbury, including the Twin Lakes, on the west, 
while Sharon is on the southwest and the narrowing Housatonic valley 
is on the south. The vievr immediately below this mountain, admirably 
exposed at the point where the mountain forms a right angle, is like 
that from a balloon. Twenty miles of the Housatonic River are here 
visible, including the hidden places. This is a place of frequent resort 
for picnics and sightseeing. Under the bluff at the point of the mount- 
ain is Sentinel Rock, which is a cube of 30 feet dimensions, a huge mass 
to the top of which one may climb by a ladder. A few rods south of the 
point is House Rock, which is 60 feet high on the upper side, and under 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIEE. 263 



the cover of which 100 men could easily find shelter. A ladder leads to 
the top. In this mountain there are many ravines, fissures, caves, and 
other works of nature that will keep the visitor long interested. A view 
of this mountain from the valley below, is in Picturesque America. 

The Cai^aan Mountain Pond, 

Is a lake a mile long, with a bluff on the west side and with woods on 

nearly every side. It is an attractive place that is the object of many 

excursions. People ride to Norfolk, 7 miles, from which place the lake 

is 4 miles distant, and return via South Canaan, the return being 9 miles, 

but down a steep road. 

Twin Lakes. 

Across the river on the west, in Salisbury, are the Ashley Mountain, 
Tom's Mount, Babes' Hill and Twin Lakes, that are described in the ar- 
ticle on Salisbury. They are but 2 to o miles from Canaan, and, with ail 
their attractions, seem to be as much a part of Canaan as of Salisbury. 

Delightful Drives. 
There are many delightful drives in this town, a few of which are 
mentioned in the table of drives. One road goes over Road Hill, 2 miks 
northeast of Canaan village, and from the summit of the hill the views 
along the Housatonic valley are very fine. Williams Hill, half a mile 
from the village is the object of a very pleasing walk. Campbell's Falls, 
mentioned more particularly in the article on New Marlboro, are H 
miles off and are the place of many picnics and most agreeable excursions. 

Pine Grove Camp Grounds. 
The grounds of the Canaan Pine Grove Camp Meeting Association of 
the Poughkeepsie district are situated 2 miles south of Canaan village, 
between^'the Housatonic Railroad and the river. They embrace about 35 
acres having many attractive features of hill, woodland and view, and 
were put to their present use in lS(iO for the first time, and permanently 
in 1871, since which time the annual meeting beginning usually the last 
week in August, on the Monday nearest the 20th, and ending a week 
afterwards, has drawn many thousands of attendants. A Sunday during 
camp meeting will find 10,OU0 people there. The Association has a large 
eating and lodging house and many other buildings that are put to 
various uses, among them being several cottages that are rented to 
people who attend camp meeting. Besides these a large number of cot- 
tages are owned by those who have built them on land leased from the 



264 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIBE. 

Association. It has become the practice of many of these jieople, in 
July and August previous to camp meeting time, to occupy their cot- 
tages as a place of summer resort. This number is constantly increas- 
ing; in 1885 it Avas about 25 families in July, and about .50 in August, 
pievious to the week of the meeting. They have a post-office on the 
grounds and telephone connection with Canaan. Following is a list of 
those who Iiave cottages on the grounds: 

Salisbury, Ct. : J. Mc Arthur, A. T. Parselles; Lime Rock, Ct. : Nelson 
A. McNeil, Sidney Ensign; Canaan, Ct. : Mrs. Nelson M. Brown, Charles 
Emmons, J. S. Corbit, Mary Owens; Falls Village, Conn.: Mrs. George 
W.Stevens, Edward Ward; Goshen, Conn.: E. S. Richards; Winsted, 
Conn.: S. A. Granger, Mrs. Abel Snow, A. Waters, Emory L. Mead; 
Sharon, Conn.: Mrs. Harrison B. St. John; Sharon Valley, Conn.: Fitch 
Landon; Kent, Conn. : Alfred Chaj)man, George R. Bull; New Milford, 
Conn.: John Flynn, S. C. Ferris; Kensington, Conn.: Mrs. Mary McAl- 
lister; Bridgeport, Conn.: Mrs. John White, Walter Nichols; Cornwall 
Bridge, Conn.: Charles Hall; New Haven, Conn.: Mrs. Mary J. Hoppen, 
the Rev. A. H. Wyatt; Sheffield, Mass. : Cyrus French; Great Barrington, 
Mass.: Ward Lewis, S. E. Forest, George W. Anderson; Housatonic, 
Mass.: F. R. Warfield; Worcester, Mass.: Mrs. F. M. Olia; Stockbridge, 
Mass.: Mrs. William Rathburn; New York, N. Y. : Miss Mary Clark, the 
Rev. William C. Smith, the Rev. A. K. Sanford, Secretary of the Asso- 
ciation, ;>57 West 24th street; Bangall, N. Y. : the Rev. George B. Clark, 
Nathan C. Sackett; Lake Mahopac, N. Y. : the Rev. J. W. Macomber; 
Poughkeepsie, N. Y. : Mrs. G. H. Adriance; Lagrangeville, N. Y. : The 
Rev. Robert Kay; Otego, N. Y. : The Rev. A. Nash; Pawling, N. Y. : The 
Rev. A. B. Corbin; East Chatham, N. Y. : Mrs. C. K. Jones, Miss Hester 
A. Cady; Dover, N. Y. : Mrs. Sarah A. Hoag; Peekskill, N. Y. : The Rev. 
James H. Haight, George W. Robertson; Hillsdale, N. Y. : Miss Flavia 
M. Bristol; Prattsville, N. Y. : The Rev. B. H. Burch; Pine Plains, N. Y. : 
Mrs. W. S. Eno, Ann Eliza Dussance; Matteawan, N. Y. : John F. Tal- 
lardy. Address wanting: Mrs. Charles Sanford, E. B. Atwell, and the 
Rev. J. R. Vandewater, Florida. 



THE rugged Taconics, with their many interesting peaks and steeps, 
divide the Berkshire valley from another of charming beauty over 
in the state of New York, called by many the gem of the valleys in all 
that region. There New Lebanon is situated. The valley stretches for 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 265 

many miles north and south of the center — as far north as Petersburg, 
up near the Pownals, and south down to Chatham. The Wynomanock 
Valley, it may be called, from the river of that name, flowing through it. 
New Lebanon's eastern boundary is the Taconics; and it lays claim to 
their grandeur as well as Berkshire. 

The village of New Lebanon is about the center of the town, and 
is the birthplace of Samuel J. Tilden, where the Tilden family still makes 
its home, and relatives of the distinguished statesman live. Mount 
Lebanon is a mile further south and a little east, and is the Shaker 
settlement of several families and the resort on Sunday in summer of 
those who wish to attend the peculiar ceremonies of their sect. People 
drive for miles to attend their "public meetings" — from Williamstown, 
from Pittsfield by scores, from Lenox, from Stockbridge, from " Fern- 
side," and in short from nearly all over Berkshire. Their community is 
also an intei-esting place to visit at any time and here is the home of the 
seer of their sect, the well-known Elder Frederick W. Evans, whose 
fame is almost world-wide in connection with Shakerism. 

Lebanon Springs. 
North of New Lebanon, a mile or more, is the pretty little village 
of Lebanon Springs. The village proper is down on the flat, as it may be 
termed. Up on the hillside, a pretty steep ascent and yet reached by a 
good road, with many glens and wild places along the way, for half a 
mile, is Columbia Hall, one of the old time, as it is perhaps among the 
oldest, resorts. It dates its establishment before the days of the rail- 
road, when the stages were loaded with tourists; and aristocracy, foreign 
guests, presidents and statesmen by the score have sought its retreat 
and enjoyed its alluring rest and quietude. It stands on an eminence 
overlooking the valley south and west for miles, and the scene, as one 
stands looking from the balcony or the hights farther up the hill, is 
simply enchanting. The Columbia Springs are in the hotel grounds 
and, possessing medicinal virtues, mainly of sulphur and iron, their 
healing properties are much sought, both for bathing and for drinking 
purposes. The temperature of the springs is the same all the year round, 
and the flow is very large. The hotel has accommodations for about 400 
guests and is now the property of Mr Phillips, a hotel proprietor in Phila- 
delphia. In the village is the Fields Hotel, a famous hostelry, a hotel for 
many years and also quite a resort. There are also several cottagers and 
summer residents in the village, for whom the slopes which abound on 
the eastern border of the valley, are j^yleasant and inviting spots. 



266 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIBE. 

The views hereabouts are unsurpassed in all the region. At any point 
back of the Columbia Hall, goino^ east, is a continual opening of new 
views and a cause for repeated ejaculations of delight as some new 
vision of beauty greets the eye. There are many beautiful drives in- 
Lebanon. The valley itself is a treat; the roads are well-kept and there 
is hardly a hill to slacken a trot for miles. To the east towards Pittsfield 
is another drive which baffles a pen picture ; a favorite drive is to leave 
the Hall as it is called, go directly east to Pittsfield, 7 miles, then re- 
turn through Bakersville, the Hancock Shakers, over the mountain, 
again west through the Mount Lebanon Shaker community, and then 
north again home, a distance of about 10 miles. A coaching party is 
almost of daily occurrence from Lebanon Springs to Pittsfield, and 
telephonic communication makes Lenox and in fact all Berkshire, or 
even Albany or Troy, literally within speaking distance. 

The Harlem Extension Kailroad passes through this valley, running 
from Chatham, N". Y., to Bennington Vt., and there are frequent trains, 
in summer especially. 

THE rugged, yet charming town of Cummington, in Hampshii-e county, 
borders on Berkshire, adjoining Windsor and Peru, and Berkshire 
has a very neighborly feeling for it. Sequestered among the picturesque 
summits of the Green Mountains, this town has become a warmly apjDre- 
ciated resort in the summer and early autumn and attracts many people 
hither. The pure water, the mountain air, the array of the works 
of nature on every hand, and the restful repose of the place, have 
been enjoyed by many visitors. The village is on the north branch of the 
Westfield River and is approached by stages from Hinsdale and from 
Northampton. The town has given birth to two distinguished citizens: 
— AVilliam Cullen Bryant, the poet and editor, who left the town after 
graduation at College, to gain a world wide fame, though he had already 
written "Thanatopsis;" and Senator Henry L. Dawes of Pittsfield, who 
has been many years a Representative or Senator in Congress, where his 
services have been of a most conspicuous nature. Mr Bryant estab- 
lished a public library in the village in a pretty little building. Summer 
guests are hospitably entertained at some of the farm houses of the town 
and carry away many pleasant memories of their well spent outing. 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 267 



THE hamlet of Hillsdale, N. Y., is favorably situated for the reception 
of summer guests. Accommodations can be found at private houses 
and at the Mount Washington House, which was built particulai'ly for sum- 
mer business and has had considerable success. Many fine drives and 
natural attractions lie in the neighboring region — Copake Lake, four, 
miles off, where all sorts of aquatic sports are indulged in. White's Hill, 
near by. The Dome, a short and easy drive, Bashbish and many places in 
the Housatonic valley. 

SXA9IFOR.D, VT. 

THE valley to the northeast, from North Adams, and on through 
Clarksburg, terminates in the town of Stamford, Vt., five miles 
distant from North Adams. Stamford village is a pretty little hamlet, 
and its famous Paradise Hotel, about a mile farther on, has a great repu- 
tation for trout suppers and has otherwise a well appointed table and fine 
surroundings. It is the great out-dining place of northern Berkshii-e. 
The hotel was for years kept by Col. Wilmarth, of a prominent family in 
Berkshire, and the old landlord died as one of the leading men of the 
town. A. F. Wilmarth, now of North Adams and for many years a 
prominent oflBcer of the Home Insurance Company of New York, is 
of that stock. 

In the Green Mountains is Wiley Mountain, which, though not easily 
accessible, has nevertheless a fine look-off, and is about 1,600 feet above 
the village. Farther south is another peak, which can be reached by 
another road through Clarksburg. 

The topography of the town is such that there are but few drives in its 
borders, a peculiarity of many other northern Berkshire towns, where the 
hills are close together and there are no broad valleys and far away 
stretches as in southern Berkshire and the central part. A crazy road, 
as the villagers call it, is that along the west hills northwest, and leading 
on towards Bennington. The street through the village is the main 
stage road away over the mountain to Hartwellville, thence to Keadsboro, 
Sadwaga, and thence to Jacksonville, or to Whitingham. Leaving Stam- 
ford village to the west and then south, there is also a very pleasant road 
on through Clarksburg and to North Adams through Eagle street. Or 
this west road can be continued to Pownal over the high spur of the 
mountain there, or turning south, through what in other yeai'S was 
known as the Peak neighborhood, North Adams is reached via Houghton- 



268 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 

ville and tlie west part of Clarksburg. Turning east a short distance 
beyond the Paradise House, we enter what is called '' The Basin," a val- 
ley of some magnitude under the ragged edge of the Green Mountains. 

There have a great many men gone out from this town in the different 
walks of life. It was here that many of the Green Mountain boys were 
mustered, and the town is full of historic interest, which we cannot stop 
to glean. The Wilmarths were an old family; the Houghtous, of which 
A. C. Houghton, of the Arnold Print Works at Xorth Adams, and his 
brother, Andrew, a Boston merchant, are fair specimens of self-made 
manhood, while J. C. Houghton of the firm of Houghton & Wilmarth, 
carrying on the largest wood acid works in the country in the little vil- 
lage — quite a curious industry to visit. The Millards were a prominent 
family ; Dr. H. J. Millard of Xorth Adams, and his brother, X. L. Mil- 
lard, the shoe manufacturer, and Col. Millard, of Binghamton, X. T., a 
member of the present Congress from that city, are excellent repre- 
sentatives. D. C. Stroud, a hotel-keeper of some reputation, in Xew 
York State, is a native of Stamford; the Copelands of Pittstield, the Wil- 
marths, and many others have gone out from their old native town and 
made their mark in the world. Stamford is not a summer resort in that 
sense and there are no summer residents or homes in the town for them. 
But as a resort for rare sport in fishing or a quiet day's rest, there are 
few places that equal it. 



//fre let us halt for a time, and at the close of a delightful ramble among these 
Jiealthfttl Hills and Homes, lay down our fen and drink to the health of every reader 
of The Book ok Berkshire. 




TICK liOOK OF IJKKKSIlIin:. 269 



The Berkshire Courier. 



A LOCAL AND FAMILY JOURNAL. 



FOR OVER FIFTY YEARS A LEADING JOURNAL 
OF BERKSHIRE COUNTY. 



The Courier gleans inckistiiously and usefully the home news of southern 
Berkshire, and is a faithful mirror of the local life of its field of endeavor and 
effort, making it a desirable visitor not only with residents in and among the 
Hills and Homes of Berkshire, but of lively interest and of much value to 
those who have gone out into the world from the Housatonic Valley. 



i=i2iOE, $2.00 -A. -z-E-A-ie. 



CLARK W. BRYAN & CO., 

PUBLISHERS, 

Great Barrington, Mass. 



270 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 

PUBLICATIONS OF 

CLAEK W. BEYAIf & CO, 

Holyoke, Mass., and 239 Broadway, New York. 



Good Housekeeping, a semi-monthly Family Journal, conducted in the inter- 
ests of the Higher Life of the Household. 

$2.50 a year, single copies lo cents. 



The Paper Wo7-ld, the leading American journal of the paper trade devoted 
to the literature and business interests of the paper manufacture and sale. 
Published monthly at $2.00 a year. 



The Manufacturer and Industrial Gazette, devoted broadly to the develop- 
ment and maintenance of the manufacturing interests of the United States. 
Published monthly at $2.00 a year. 



The Book of Berkshire, describing and illustrating its Hills and Homes, and 
telling briefly, yet comprehensively, what Berkshire has been, what it is, and 
what it is destined to become— the most desirable region for summer homes in 
America. With a clear and comprehensive map of the entire county and its 
surroundings. Nearly 300 pages with over 40 illustrations. 

In paper covers, 50 cents ; in leatherette binding, 75 cents. 



CI.ARK yS. BRYAIV & CO., 

HOLYOKE, MASS. 
239 Broadway, New York, 



THE BOOK OF BEKKSHIKE. 271 

PUBLICATIONS OF 

CLAEK W. MYM & CO, 

Holyoke, Mass., and 239 Broadway, New York. 



T//C Paper Mill Directory of the World, a standard work, and the only relia- 
ble one of the kind published. Price ^i.oo. 



Directory of Architects, giving the name and address of every architect in the 
United States, with a classified list of First- Hands in the Building Trades. 
Price $2.00. 

A History of Paper, its Genesis and its Revelations, giving the origin and 
manufacture, utility and value of an indispensable staple of the commercial 
world. Price $i.oo. 

Geer's Analysis of the Science of Accounts, the most comprehensive and valu- 
able work on book-keeping yet published. Price $3.00. 



A History of the Thirty-Seventh Regimetit Massachusetts Volnnteers, by the 
historian of the regiment, James L. Bowen. Price $2.00. 



History of the Toian of Cheshire, Mass. Price $2.00. 



First- Class Mercantile, Mantfacttiring, Catalogue and Counting-Poom Print- 
ing a Specialty. ^ 

CLARK IV. BRYAN & CO., 

HOLYOKE, MASS. 
239 Broadway, New York. 



272 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 

SEND FOR CIRCULAR 1886. 

y0 *^ XEXXH SEASOX. -^ 

C. TICKNOR, Proprietor. 



Southern Berkshire Resort. Matchless Surroundings and Drives. En- 
tire absence of Mosquitoes and Malaria. House provides for 
Hundred Guests. Excellent Sanitary Provisions, Mountain 
Spring Water, Electric Light, Gas, Complete Sewer- 
age, Etc., and has connected the 

BERKSHIRE STABLES, 

WILLIAM W. NORTON, Proprietor. 

Where complete provision for riding can be secured. Well selected 
Horses and safe driving ^particularly considered. Space for Transient 
and Boarding horses ample. 

GREAT HARRINGTON, MASS. 



274 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 



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THE liOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 




THE ALANDAR. 



THE HICHEST AND COOLEST RESORT IN BERKSHIRE. 



Very pleasantly located on the Taconic Mountains, in Southwestern Berkshire, (town of 
Mount Washington). A short distance from Mt. Everett, Bashbish Falls, and all places 
of interest, and within driving distance of Great Barrington. Stockbridge, Lakeville, (Conn.) 
and other towns. The roads arc excellent. 

Accessible from New York by Harlem Railroad from Grand Central Depot to Copake, 
where -The Alan dar c?imz.gts meet guests when requested. Open from June i, to Octo- 
ber. Accommodates 40 to 50. Write for circular. 



P. O. ADDRESS, 



KRANK S. WKAVER, 

COPAKE IKON WORKS, 

Col. Co., N. Y. 



276 



THE BOOK OF BEIiKSUUtt:. 




AMERICAN HOUSE, Pittsfield, Mass. 

COMPLETELY KEXOVATED. 

Newly, Elegantly, and Comfortably Furnished. Modern Improvements and 
First-class in all respects. 

'WM. ST. LAWRENCE, Proprietor. 

Mt Everett House, 

Located in the Tillage of 

SOUTH EGREMONT, (Berkshire, Co.,) MASS. 

Four miles from Great Barringtou Station, on the Housatonic Rail- 
road and Six miles from Hillsdale, N. Y., on the Harlem Railroad. 



Livery attached with good stabhng for private horses. 

Telephone (free to guests) connects with Depot, 

Telegraph and Doctors' Offices, Drug 

Stores, Hotels, Etc. 

W. B. PECK, Proprietor. 



THE COOK OF BERKSHIRE. 277 

COLLINS HOUSE, 

GREAT BARRINGTON, MASS. 

Eligibly situated withiii easy reach of the Post-Office, Telegraph and 
Raihvay Station. 

GOOD I.IVEKY STABLE CONNECTED WITH THE HOUSE. 

ALFRED PECK, Proprietor. 
COLLINS HOUSE 

Livery and Boarding Stable, 

GREA7' BARRINGTON, MASS. 

First-Class Teams furnished with experienced drivers. Orders left at C. H. 
Lillie's Drug Store will have prompt attention, by Telephone. 

OHORGK L. TULLER. 

Miller House, 

W. B. LOVELAND, Agent, - GREAT BARRIXGTON, MASS. 



The Edison Electric Eight has been introduced, and the house has recently been reno- 
vated and put in first-class order for the accommodation of the public. 

Good Livery connected with the House. 

Livery, Boarding and Feeding Stable, 

Great Barrington, Mass., Main St., rear of Miller House. 

Horses and carriages, with tlie best of appointments, furnished at sliort notice. A 
public carriage in waiting at the flousatonic railway station on the arrival of all passen- 
ger trains, and carriages kept in waiting for conveyance to any desired point throughout 
the town and to adjoining towns. Public conveyances of all kinds promptly furnished. 
Good accommodations for feeding and boarding horses with the best of care and attention. 

^i, J. MALLORV. 



278 TIIK IJOOK OF r.KHKSIIIKE. 



CLAFLIN HOUSE, BECKET, MASS. 

Situated on the line of the Boston and Albany Rail Road, 175 miles from New York, 
134 miles from Boston, 65 miles from Albany, 35 miles from Springfield. Recently 
enlarged and newly furnished. Perfect drainage. Spring water. Elevation 
1,200 feet, large well-shaded grounds. Best trout fishing in the 
county. Laundry, bath-rooms and livery in connection. 
A quiet summer home with first-class ac- 
commodations for 50 guests. 
For descriptive circulars address, 

.j^. C3r. OI=^OSS, IPxcpxietor. 

The South Berkshire House, 

NEW 3IARLBORO, MASS. 

This popular family resort, liaving an elevated location among the Berkshire 

Hills, with improvements both in house and cuisine is again open to 

guests under the old management. Accommodations 

for 125. Terms, $y to ^10 per week. 

Send for circular. 

IRA N. TUTTLE & SON, Piop'rs. 

New Marlboro, Berkshire Co., Mass. 

"Summit Farm," 

Board for 25 to 30 Guests. 

Elevation about 2,000 feet. Pleasant surroundings. Mt. Ethel, Sunset Rock and Mt. 
Prospect, commanding a view of valleys of the Hudson and Housatonic, but a few minutes' 
walk from the house. Bashbisli Falls, Bare Rock Falls, Sage's Ravine, and Mt. Everett, 
within easy reach by carriage. Two daily mails, accessible by Housatonic R'lilroad. Great 
Barrington, lo miles, and N. Y. and Harlem Railroad from Copake Iron Works, 3 miles 
distant. Fare from Copake, $1.00, including baggage. 

Terms, *7 to *1!J per week. O. C. ^VHITBECK, Proprietor. 

P. O. Address, Mt. Washington, Mass. 

Great Barrington Baggage Express. 

Baojgage Express Wagons to the railway station of the Housatonic railroad on the ar- 
rival of every train. 

Baggage called for in any part of the town and delivered promptly. 

Horses and carriages to let, and parties driven to any part of the surrounding country, 
as may be desired. 

ALSO DEPUTY SHERIFF FOR BERKSHIRE COUNTY. 
. D. HUMPHREY, - Office, Cliurcli Block, Main St. 



/• 



TIIK UOOK OF UKliKSIIIKt;. 



279 



Brookside Farm. 

Sumuier Board. 

Accommodates from 15 to 20 guests from 
early June to October. 1886 is the 9th 
Season. Location is pleasant and healthy, 
with pure air and water, good roads, fine 
drives and rambles. At upper end ot Hou- 
satonic valley, 6^^ miles north of Pittsfield. 
and 1,500 feet above sea-level. Terms r«-a- 
souable. Address, J. A. KOYCE, 

L,ane?boro, JVIass. 



Kd^^ards Hall, 

Home of Jonat/iati Edwards, 

STOCKBRIDGE, MASS. 

Open all the year. Excellent Table. 

MKS. WAKW, Proprietor. 

References :— Rev. Arthur Lawrence, 
Stockbridge, Mass.; Rev. Dr. Henry M. 
Field, .Stockbridge, Mass.; Mr. Henry 
Sedgwick, Stockbridge, Mass.; Hon. John 
A. Brady, Judge Superior Court, N.Y. City. 



Among Lakes and Mountains. 

Delightful situation. 3'2 hours from New 
York, few minutes from post-office and rail- 
way station. Handsome, shady lawns, cool 
verandas. Choice drives and mountain 
outlooks, boating, fishing and bathing in 
Twin Lakes, and si.x other lakes. Finest 
lake region in or near the Berkshire Hills. 

Thirty to forty guests. $7 to ^10. 

MRS. J. O. LAXDON, 

" Lawn Cottage." 
Salisbury, C't. 



Village Residences 

J^or Salf and to Rent. 



A. G. COLLINS, Attorney at Law. 
COLLINS &WHEELER, 

(ieneral Insurance Ajjents. 



OFFICES, .Sumner 15uilding. Main Street, 
Great Barrington, Mass. 



SKY FARM. 

This unique estate of over 600 acres is now 
offered 

For Sale on most liberal terms. 

Peihaps no place in Berkshire is more fa- 
mously delightful, or, on the whole, as de- 
sirable for a gentleman's country seat. (107 
miles from New York City by Harlem Rail- 
road.) Address, S. B. G'ood.ale & Co., 

Fifth Avenue Hotel, New York. 



CLARK W. BRYAN &- CO. 

Publishers and Printers., 

HOLYOKE, MASS. 

Have Facilities for Doing First- Class 
Book and Job Printing. 

Correspondence solicted. Estimates giTc?i. 



Nen' York Office, 239 Broadway. 



The "HOUSEHOLD" Patent Emery 
Wheel Knife Sharpener. 

Patented March 16, iSSo. Other patents pending. 
It meets the demand for a practical and inexpensive arti- 
cle for sharpening Knives. ."Scissors, and other cutting im- 
plements. It does its work quickly and effectively. The 
Adjustable Table with Scissors Guide, enables anyone to 
sharpen Knives or Scissors propierly. It can be raised or 
lowered as desired. The wheel is 6 x i, with rim of Solid 
Emery, and warranted durable. The Machine is fast- 
ened to a table or shelf by turning a thumb screw. Sent to 
any address east of the Alississippi river on receipt of ^1.50 
by express or mail, prepaid. 

Liberal Terms to Agents and the Trade. 
Address, C. E. STEVENS, Northampton, Mass. 




280 THE BOOK OF BEKKSIIIRE. 

IS-iT" ISSS. 

F. T. WHITING & SON, 
APOTHECARIES. 

Fancy Goods in all varieties we keep a very complete stock of. and can show anything 

useful in that line. Also Foreign and Domestic Cigais we carry a very large 

stock of. Then our Drug and Patent Medicine Line is larger 

than is often found in tiie country. 

GREAT BARRINGXON, MASS. 

Great Barrington, Mass. 

If you intend spending the summer at or near this beautiful place, RH^IE^BHR 

you can find at 

LILLIE'S FIRST CLASS DRUG STORE, 

Anything usually to be found in the finest city stores. 
Prescriptions a specialty at any hour. Don't forget. 

LILLIE THE DRUGGIST, Berkshire House Block, 

Great Barrington, Mass. 

Willard's Pharmacy, Eddy's Pharmacy, 



SUMNER BUILDING, 

Great Barrington. 

A Complete Stock of 



I.EIVOX, MASS., 

—Opposite Curtis's Hotel.— 

Medicine 1 Toilet Articles, •^S::%%t,SX,;;''i'f 



(IT FLOAVKKS 

For Weddings, Parties, Etc., furnished 
to order. 



cles., the very best the 
markets afford. 



MORGAN'S CINNAMON CORDIAL 

An old and thoroughly tried remedy for Diarrhoea, Colic and Cholera Morbus. 

MORGAN'S AGUE REMEDY, 

For Chills and Fever. A Sure Cure. 

MORGAN'S DYSPEPSIA CURE, 

For Dyspepsia and Indigestion. A positive cure. In pill, powder and liquid form. 

R. E. MORGAN, Druggist, HOLYOKE, MASS. 



TIIK HOOK OI- HKliKSIIIIiK. 



281 




DEALER IN 

HIRDWARE AND GOAL, LIME, CEMENT, PAINTS, OILS, GLASS, k. 

GREAT BARRINGTON, MASS. 



282 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 



ESTABLISHED IN 1822. 



HURLBUT PAPER CO., 

SOUTH LEE, MASS., 



MANUFACTURERS OF 



French Liiien. 

Oriental Linen. 

Queen Anne Liiien, 

JFer7'iside Linen. 

IN BOXES, WITH ENVELOPES TO MATCH. 



Also, Folios of Same Goods. 



THE BOOK OF BEKKSIIIRE. 



283 



L L. BROWN PAPER CO. 

ADAMS, MASS., U. S. A. 

MANUFACTURERS OF FIRST-CLASS 




Linen Ledger and Record 

PAPERS, 

Which will stand the severest tests of erasure and 
re-writing, being 



These papers possess unusual strength and beauty, and contain a 
sizing that resists the severest erasiire and re-writing tests. 

Every ream is water-marked with name, and put up with binders' 
boards, trimmed perfectly square and ready for ruling machine. 



284 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 



SMITH PAPER CO. 



Lee, Mass., U. S. A., 



-ivC-A.iNrTjr'-^C'X'-crEaEies o^- 



Z^ook, j\/ews and ^^amlla 



PAPERS 



Write for Samples. 



E LIZ UN SMITH, Preside nt. WELLINGTON SMITH, Treastirer. 

DeWITT S. SMITH, Secretary. 



THE BOOK OF BEKKSHIRE. 



285 



Telegraphic Communication with Mills. 
Business Established 1822. Incorporated 1862. 



OWEN PAPER COMPANY, 

PAPER MANUFACTURERS, 

HOUSATONIC, MASS. 



<tAll Papers [Manufactured by us since January ist, i8y6, have 

been put iip ^oo sheets to the l^eani instead of 

480, unless otherwise ordered. 



OWEN PAPER COMPANY'S (PARTIAL) LIST. 



Billets. 
Octavos. 

Commercial Notes. 
Confess A^ote. 
Packet Notes. 
Letters. 

Cominercial Letters. 
Packet Posts. 
Foolscaps. 
Bill Papers. 
Legal Caps. 
Legal Quarto Posts. 



Flat Letters and Notes. 

Blank Book and Flat Papers. 

Linen Copying Papers. 

First Quality Linen Ledger Papers. 

Lineti Record Papers. 

Linen, Bond and Bank A^ote Papers. 

Lineti Parchment Papers. 

Linen Drawifig Papers. 

Thin Linen Papers, all Sizes. 

Pure Laid Litien Papers. 

Wedding Folios and Royals. 

Type- Writer Papers of all Kinds. 



We manufacture many other kinds of Papers not 
included in this List. 



N. B.— Mills at Housatotiic on the Housatonic Railroad, five hours from New York. 



286 THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 



CRANE & CO., 



DALTON, N4ASS. 



Manufacturers of 



Bond, Bank Note, Parchment 




Onion Skin, Legal Cap, Etc. 



At these Mills the Bank Note Papers used by 
the National Banks of the United States, and the 
Paper used by the U. S. Government for their Legal 
Tender and Bonds is made. 



Paper for the Currency and Bonds of other Gov- 
ernments is also made here. 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIRE. 



287 



Extra Fine Papers 



MANUFACTURED BY 



Z. CRANE, Jr., & BRO., 

DALTON, MASS., U. S. A. 




THESE GOODS. WHICH ARE ^ 
ACKNOWLEDGED TO EQUAL 
THE FINEST FOREIGN MAN- 
UFACTURES, ARE PRESENT- 
ED IN THE FOLLOWING, 
STYLES AND QUALITIES : 




SUPERFINE QUALITY. 

In handsome Light Blue Boxes containing 
one-quarter of a ream of Note Paper each, 
and bearing in blue letters description of 
contents. 

In separate Boxes of uniform size, are 
one-eighth of a thousand Envelopes corres- 
ponding in tint and quality to the paper. 



de Mark nn ..ur 

" Distaff" brand. 



EXTRA SUPERFINE QUALITY. 

In attractive Lavender Colored Boxes 
containing one-fourth ream of Extra fine 
Paper each, with contents printed in red. 
Corresponding to this, in like boxes, are 
Envelopes to match. 

All this Stationery may be relied on to be 
according to representation. It is suited to 
the tastes of the most select trade. 



In addition to the above lines, our other Specialties are put up 

with care, in attractive and substantial form. Goods can be 

seen at the Mill, or at our New York General Agency, 

GEO. B. HURD & CO.'S, 79 Beekman Street. 



SOLI) BY ALL BOOKSELLERS AND STATIONERS. 



2SS THE BOOK OK BEKKSHIRK. 



Fine * Carriage * Axles, 



THE CHOICE OF FIRST-GLASS BUILDERS. 



MANUFACTURED BY 



DALZELL AXLE COMPANY, 

■\V. C. Dalzell, Pics. Roscoe C. Taft, Treas. 

South Egremont, Mass. 

Fii/l Collingc Axles, 

DahcITs Half Collingc Axles. 

DahelVs Centennial Axles. 

Spring Was/ier Axles. 

Mail and Mail Oil Cup Axles. 
Rubber Cushioned Axles. 

Collinge Collar Axles^ 
Fine Taper Axles for Omnibus and E.xpress. 

The finest light axles both Half Patent and Taper for Eoad and 
Track -work, litted with Wrought Iron Case Hardened or Composition 
Boxes when ordered. 

Ail of the Best Material and Finest Workmanship. 

Send for Price List to 

Telegraph and Express Station J OALZELt, AXLE CO.. 

GREAT BARRINGTON, MASS. ) SOITH KGKKaiONT, MAS.S. 



TIIK BOOK OK 15EKKSJIIKE. 28!) 

Good Housekeeping 

A SBMl MONTHLY FAMILY JOURNAL 

Conducted in the Interests of the 

Higher Life of the Household. 



During the first year of its publication Good Housekeeping has won for 
itself an enviable reputation in the Homes of the World. Its pages have been 
industriously and faithfully devoted to the improvement and development of the 
nobler and more desirable features of Home Life. 

It is original in design, comprehensive in management and strong in in- 
dividuality of character and conduct. Its discussions have been practical and 
had with a view of being elevating, instructive and useful in the highest degree 
to every one having an ambition or desire to make the Home attractive and 
those who dwell there to feel that " there's no place like home." 

It has won commendations of the press, not only in its own country, but 
in many others where the English language is spoken, such as has never been 
accorded to a family publication of such tender years. 

It numbers among its list of contributors many of the ablest and most noted 
writers of the day, on family topics, and these are supplemented by contributors 
from the pens of many practical and successful housekeepers measurably un- 
known to fame but none the less valuable workers in the field of Home 
Literature. 

Among these many be mentioned Catherine Owen, Rose Terry Cooke, 
Marion Harland, Maria Parloa, Hester M. Poole, Christine Terhune Herrick, 
H. Annette Poole, Margaret Sydney, Mrs. D. H. R. Goodale, Dora Reade 
Goodale, Helen Campbell, Mrs. H. M. Plunkett, Helen Chase, Mary E. Dewey, 
Lucretia P. Hale, Margaret Eytinge, Anna L. Dawes, E. C. Gardner, William 
Paul Gerhard, Dr. F. M. Hexamer, Milton Bradley, etc., etc. 

Good Housekeeping is published semi monthly at $2.50 a year, and is sold 
on the news stands of the country at 10 cents a copy. 

CLARK W. BRYAN & CO., Publishers, 

New York Office, 239 Broadway. HOLYOKE, MASS. 



290 THE BOOK OF BERKSIIIRK. 

S PRIlSrGFIELD 

FIRE AND MARINE 

INSURANCE COMPANY, 

OF SPRINGFIELD, MASS. 

ANNUAL STATEMENT, JANUARY 1st, 1886. 

CAPITAL. ONE MILLION DOLLARS. 



United States 6 per cent. Currency Reg. Bonds, . . $130,000.00 

Water Company Bonds, 103,000.00 

Rail Road Bonds, 335,900.00 

Rail Road Stocks, 870,084.00 

Bank Stocks, 445,080.00 

Real Estate owned by the Company, 96,528.00 

Cash on hand, in Banks, and in hands of Agents, in course of 

transmission, 276,556.36 

Loans on Mortgage of Real Estate, 303,366.67 

Loans secured by R. R. and Bank Stocks, .... 15,400.00 

Accrued Interest, Rents and other Dues, .... 227,521.77 

$2,803,436.80 

Capital Stock all paid up, .... $1,000,000.00 

Outstanding Losses, 142,948.21 

Re-Insurance Fund, 1,224,582.74 

All other Claims, 25,363.50 $2,392,894.45 

Surplus over all Liabilities, $410,542.35 

Surplus as regards Policy Holders, .... $1,410,542.35 

J. N. DUNHAM, President. ANDREW J. WRIGHT, Treasurer. 

SANFORD J. HALL, Secretary. CHAS. A. BIRNIE, Ass't Sec'y. 

Wellington & Bixby, Agents, Adams 



Collins & Wheeler, 
M. H. Pease, 
Geo. F. Miller & Co., 
Wilson & Read, 
Keyes Danforth, 



Great Barrington. 

Lee. 

North Adams. 

Pittsfield. 

Williamstown. 



THE BOOK OF BERKSHIKE. 291 

THE MASSACHUSETTS MUTUAL 

LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY, 

SPRINGFIELD, MASS. 

M. V. B. EDGERLY, President. JOHN A. HALL, Secretary. 

HENRY S. LEE, Vice President. L. J. POWERS, Treasurer. 

OSCAR B. IRELAND, Actuary. 

P. W. CHAPIN, M. D., Medical Examiner. 

G. S. STEBBINS, M. D., Assistant Medical Examiner. 



THE BEST LIFE INSURANCE. 

Our Twenty Payment Life Policy with guarantee of legal cash value at 
the end of twenty years gives you the best protection for life at a low pre- 
mium, and, besides, furnishes a 

HANDSOME ENDOWMENT FUND, 

If you wish to retire at the end of twenty years. No society or co-oper- 
ative insurance approaches it for cheapness. 

EXAMPLE. 

AGE, 35. $10,000. PREMIUMS, $342.00 

Total premiums in twenty years, -.-..- $6,840.00 

Legal cash value at end of twenty years, 5,264.90 

Cost of twenty years of insurance, $1,575.10 

Average cost per year for each $1,000, ----- 7.87 

This would be the average annual cost if there were no dividends, and 
a moderate estimate of surplus on this kind of policy would nearly if not 
quite extinguish the cost should the insured call for the cash value at the 
end of twenty years and retire. 

The Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company issues both life 
and endowment policies, and its contract is liberal and definite. For cir- 
culars and information, Address 

JAMES L. JOHNSON, Gen'l Agent, 

413 Main Street, SPRINGFIELD, MASS. 



292 THE BOOK OF UEKKSHIKE. 



THE HITHOM SPEIia II 1886, 



In the winter of 1871-2. the mineral water vein of the Hathorn Spring was se- 
cured, as it issued from two natural openings in the Trenton Limestone Rock,., 
by two wooden tubes about 35 feet long, covering these openings and carrying 
the water upward to the surface of the ground. 

During the past winter the Diamond Drill has tapped the vein at two points 
within the rock, once boring through the rock 29% feet (depth 75 from surface), 
and again in another location 60 feet through the rock (depth 118 from surface) 
to reach the vein. These two drill holes have been tubed with glass-lined iron 
piping, to conduct the water from the vein to the top of the ground, thus afford- 
ing two new outlets for the spring making four in all. 

The annual sale in bottles of the Hathorn Water largely exceeds the com- 
bined output in bottles of all the other natural bottled mineral waters of Saratoga. 

The Hathorn Water is for sale in the hotels of Berkshire County, and by the 
druggists, grocers and wine merchants. 



ALIvEN & OINTER, 

RICHMOND, VIRGINIA, 



IMANUFACTURERS OF 



Richmond Straight Cut, Virginia Brights, 

DIXIE CIGARETTES, AND SMOKING TOBACCO. 

JOSEPH WHITGOMB & CO., Sole Agents, 

SPRINGFIELD, MASS. 



Berkshire Scenery. 

Aly Collection of Berkshire Views is the largest in the County. Have 
added many nezv views to my collection this Spring. 



W. H. VAN PATTEN, Photographer, - Great Barrington, Mass. 



..^ 



f)OU$ATOni(^ R. R. 



(i^ 



DIRECT LINE FOR THE 

Famous Berkshire Hills of Western 
lassaclmsetts. 



Remarkable for pure air, romantic drives and grand mountain scenery. 
The crowded condition of these resorts yearly bear evidence of the de- 
light with which city people regard a summer sojourn among them. 

Only line running through cars from New York to Great Barrington, 
Stockbridge, Lenox and Pittsfield, by trains leaving Grand Central De- 
pot at 8 A. M. and 3:40 p. M. daily, except Sunday, via New York, New 
Haven and Hartford R. R. 

A new fast express train with drawing room cars will be put on June "jth, 
leaving^ New York for Pittsfeld y.^o p. m. Leaving Pittsfield 4:15 p. ni. 
for New York, making close connections to and from North Adams. For 
further particulars see pocket time tables to be had at any ticket office of this 
company. 

Route from Boston and Springfield over Boston and Albany Railroad 
via Pittsfield. 

From Albany over Boston and Albany Railroad, via Pittsfield. 

An illustrated folder of the road and list of hotels sent upon applica- 
tion to the general ticket agent. 

Also, through tickets are sold, and connections made for Pittsfield by 
the steamboat leaving pier 35 East River at 11 A. M. Thus affording 
tourists and excursionists a delightful mid-day sail, and view of the Brook- 
lyn bridge, the various city institutions on the East River, Hell Gate, 
Fort Schuyler and the beautiful shores of Long Island Sound. 

Henry A. Bishop, Superintendent. 
C. VV. Wood, Ass't Superintendent. 

H. D. AVERILL, Gen. Ticket Agent. 

May, 1886. General Office : Bridgeport, Conn. 



THE BERKSHIRE 

Life Insurance Company, 

OF PITTSFIELD, MASS. 



It issues one of the plainest and most lib- 
eral policy contracts extant. 

It has ample solid assets, and a large and 
substantial surplus. 

It has offices in the principal Cities and 
Towns in the North, East and West. 

For circulars and pamphlets apply to any of 
its Agents or to the Home Office. 



WILLIAM R. PLUNKETT, President. 

JAMES M. BARKER, Vice President. 

JAMES W. HULL Secretary. 



HAMER & STONE, Gen'i Agents for Western Mass. md Connecticut, 

OFFICE, Company's Building, PITTSFIELD. 



Those interested in the Berkshire Hills will be furnished with fine maps 
free on application. 



